Opal Capital LLC Acquires New Position in Cheniere Energy, Inc. $LNG

Opal Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of Cheniere Energy, Inc. (NYSE:LNG) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 2,749 shares of the energy company’s stock, valued at approximately $593,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in LNG. Brighton Jones LLC acquired a new position in Cheniere Energy during the 4th quarter worth $335,000. Bank of Nova Scotia raised its position in Cheniere Energy by 13.3% in the 2nd quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia now owns 8,825 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $2,149,000 after purchasing an additional 1,035 shares in the last quarter. Sei Investments Co. boosted its stake in shares of Cheniere Energy by 23.1% in the 2nd quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 183,153 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $44,600,000 after buying an additional 34,422 shares during the period. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina boosted its stake in shares of Cheniere Energy by 0.8% in the 2nd quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 103,040 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $25,092,000 after buying an additional 805 shares during the period. Finally, Ieq Capital LLC grew its position in shares of Cheniere Energy by 87.0% during the second quarter. Ieq Capital LLC now owns 36,502 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $8,889,000 after buying an additional 16,977 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.26% of the company’s stock.

Cheniere Energy Stock Down 1.9%

LNG opened at $230.67 on Wednesday. Cheniere Energy, Inc. has a one year low of $186.20 and a one year high of $300.89. 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 stock has a market capitalization of $48.34 billion and a P/E ratio of 37.94. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $249.34 and its 200-day simple moving average is $231.79.

Cheniere Energy (NYSE:LNG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The energy company reported ($16.65) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.25 by ($20.90). The firm had revenue of $5.87 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.69 billion. Cheniere Energy had a return on equity of 38.95% and a net margin of 7.23%.The company’s quarterly revenue was up 7.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.57 EPS. Analysts anticipate that Cheniere Energy, Inc. will post 14.93 EPS for the current year.

Cheniere Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, May 19th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 11th were given a dividend of $0.555 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 11th. This represents a $2.22 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.0%. Cheniere Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 36.51%.

Cheniere Energy announced that its board has approved a stock buyback plan on Thursday, February 26th that authorizes the company to buyback $10.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the energy company to purchase up to 21.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are often an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of Cheniere Energy from $325.00 to $327.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 3rd. Bank of America boosted their price target on shares of Cheniere Energy from $296.00 to $322.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, March 20th. Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on shares of Cheniere Energy from $313.00 to $308.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st. Sanford C. Bernstein initiated coverage on shares of Cheniere Energy in a report on Tuesday. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $283.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price objective on shares of Cheniere Energy from $275.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 7th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have issued a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $297.71.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Cheniere Energy news, EVP Sean N. Markowitz sold 22,246 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $290.98, for a total transaction of $6,473,141.08. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 64,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $18,622,720. This trade represents a 25.79% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CFO Zach Davis sold 29,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $300.00, for a total transaction of $8,700,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 87,146 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $26,143,800. The trade was a 24.97% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders own 0.55% of the company’s stock.

Cheniere Energy Company 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.