Cheniere Energy (NYSE:LNG) Hits New 52-Week High on Analyst Upgrade

Cheniere Energy, Inc. (NYSE:LNG)’s stock price hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Monday after JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on the stock from $334.00 to $344.00. JPMorgan Chase & Co. currently has an overweight rating on the stock. Cheniere Energy traded as high as $301.89 and last traded at $300.95, with a volume of 697,298 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $298.67.

Several other equities analysts also recently weighed in on LNG. UBS Group restated a “buy” rating on shares of Cheniere Energy in a report on Tuesday, September 1st. Sanford C. Bernstein reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $283.00 price objective on shares of Cheniere Energy in a research report on Friday. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $336.00 target price on shares of Cheniere Energy in a research report on Saturday, October 10th. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their target price on shares of Cheniere Energy from $300.00 to $319.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, August 24th. Finally, Zacks Research lowered shares of Cheniere Energy from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 11th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have issued a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $310.65.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Cheniere Energy

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Bank of New York Mellon Corp purchased a new stake in shares of Cheniere Energy during the 2nd quarter worth $502,015,000. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its stake in shares of Cheniere Energy by 210.1% during the second quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 2,444,403 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $584,237,000 after buying an additional 1,656,194 shares during the period. OMERS ADMINISTRATION Corp lifted its position in Cheniere Energy by 6,513.7% during the 1st quarter. OMERS ADMINISTRATION Corp now owns 564,742 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $160,251,000 after acquiring an additional 556,203 shares during the period. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership boosted its position in Cheniere Energy by 50.2% in the first quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 867,496 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $246,161,000 after buying an additional 289,963 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Alyeska Investment Group L.P. lifted its holdings in shares of Cheniere Energy by 61.1% in the 2nd quarter. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. now owns 632,971 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $151,286,000 after buying an additional 239,956 shares during the period. 87.26% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Cheniere Energy Stock Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 0.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.97. The company has a market capitalization of $62.17 billion, a PE ratio of 22.41, a PEG ratio of 1.19 and a beta of 0.06. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $278.86 and a two-hundred day moving average of $260.89.

Cheniere Energy (NYSE:LNG) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The energy company reported $3.02 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.11 by ($0.09). Cheniere Energy had a return on equity of 29.80% and a net margin of 13.57%. The firm had revenue of $5.73 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.92 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $7.30 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 23.5% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts anticipate that Cheniere Energy, Inc. will post 16.75 EPS for the current year.

Cheniere Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, August 18th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 10th were given a $0.5550 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 10th. This represents a $2.22 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.7%. Cheniere Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 16.53%.

Cheniere Energy Company Profile

Cheniere Energy, Inc is an energy infrastructure company engaged primarily in the production and export of liquefied natural gas (LNG). The company purchases natural gas, processes it through liquefaction facilities, and delivers LNG to customers in international energy markets. Its operations also include natural gas procurement, transportation, storage, and LNG marketing.

Cheniere operates the Sabine Pass LNG facility in Cameron Parish, Louisiana, and the Corpus Christi LNG facility near Corpus Christi, Texas.