Maryland State Retirement & Pension System Decreases Stock Holdings in Cheniere Energy, Inc. $LNG

Maryland State Retirement & Pension System decreased its stake in shares of Cheniere Energy, Inc. (NYSE:LNG) by 4.2% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 204,795 shares of the energy company’s stock after selling 9,022 shares during the period. Cheniere Energy comprises 1.2% of Maryland State Retirement & Pension System’s portfolio, making the stock its 15th largest holding. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System owned about 0.10% of Cheniere Energy worth $58,113,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in LNG. Strive Financial Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Cheniere Energy during the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Kohmann Bosshard Financial Services LLC bought a new stake in shares of Cheniere Energy in the fourth quarter worth $26,000. Financial Life Planners bought a new stake in shares of Cheniere Energy in the first quarter worth $26,000. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd purchased a new stake in Cheniere Energy during the third quarter valued at $27,000. Finally, Accordant Advisory Group Inc purchased a new stake in Cheniere Energy during the fourth quarter valued at $29,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.26% of the company’s stock.

Cheniere Energy Price Performance

NYSE LNG opened at $265.05 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $55.54 billion, a PE ratio of 43.59 and a beta of -0.01. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.55, a quick ratio of 0.48 and a current ratio of 0.57. The business’s fifty day moving average is $241.32 and its 200 day moving average is $238.40. Cheniere Energy, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $186.20 and a fifty-two week high of $300.89.

Cheniere Energy Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, May 19th. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 11th were issued a dividend of $0.555 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 11th. This represents a $2.22 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.8%. Cheniere Energy’s payout ratio is currently 36.51%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have issued reports on LNG. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on Cheniere Energy from $325.00 to $327.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 3rd. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price target on shares of Cheniere Energy from $286.00 to $300.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 14th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price objective on shares of Cheniere Energy from $276.00 to $312.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 24th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price objective on shares of Cheniere Energy from $275.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 7th. Finally, Benchmark restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Cheniere Energy in a research report on Tuesday, May 26th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have assigned a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Cheniere Energy has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $297.71.

Cheniere Energy Profile

Cheniere Energy, Inc is a U.S.-based energy company that develops, owns and operates liquefied natural gas (LNG) infrastructure and markets LNG to global customers. The company’s core activities include natural gas liquefaction, long‑term and short‑term LNG sales and marketing, and the associated midstream services required to move gas from production basins to international markets. Cheniere focuses on converting domestic natural gas into LNG for export, providing a bridge between North American supply and overseas demand.

Cheniere’s principal operating assets are large-scale LNG export terminals located on the U.S.