United Asset Strategies Inc. Sells 4,287 Shares of Cheniere Energy, Inc. $LNG

United Asset Strategies Inc. decreased its position in shares of Cheniere Energy, Inc. (NYSE:LNG) by 14.0% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 26,396 shares of the energy company’s stock after selling 4,287 shares during the period. United Asset Strategies Inc.’s holdings in Cheniere Energy were worth $5,131,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. State Street Corp grew its position in Cheniere Energy by 6.7% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 6,007,073 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $1,411,542,000 after acquiring an additional 377,369 shares during the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. increased its holdings in Cheniere Energy by 21.5% during the 3rd quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 2,025,609 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $475,633,000 after purchasing an additional 359,123 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp raised its position in Cheniere Energy by 5.6% in the 3rd quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 1,786,636 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $419,824,000 after purchasing an additional 95,545 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. raised its position in Cheniere Energy by 2.8% in the 3rd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,776,978 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $417,554,000 after purchasing an additional 47,619 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Amundi boosted its stake in Cheniere Energy by 11.9% in the third quarter. Amundi now owns 1,682,831 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $392,537,000 after purchasing an additional 178,316 shares in the last quarter. 87.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have recently commented on LNG. TD Cowen increased their target price on Cheniere Energy from $250.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 27th. Bank of America upped their price target on shares of Cheniere Energy from $296.00 to $322.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, March 20th. UBS Group increased their price objective on shares of Cheniere Energy from $305.00 to $340.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, March 26th. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price objective 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. Finally, Wolfe Research set a $220.00 target price on shares of Cheniere Energy and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 14th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have given a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $295.56.

Insider Transactions at Cheniere Energy

In other news, EVP Sean N. Markowitz sold 22,246 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $290.98, for a total value of $6,473,141.08. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 64,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $18,622,720. This represents a 25.79% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Zach Davis sold 29,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 owned 87,146 shares in the company, valued at $26,143,800. This represents a 24.97% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Corporate insiders own 0.55% of the company’s stock.

Cheniere Energy Stock Down 0.3%

NYSE:LNG opened at $257.11 on Thursday. Cheniere Energy, Inc. has a 12-month low of $186.20 and a 12-month high of $300.89. The company has a quick ratio of 0.81, a current ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.74. The firm has a market capitalization of $54.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.58 and a beta of 0.14. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $256.40 and its 200-day simple moving average is $224.55.

Cheniere Energy (NYSE:LNG) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 25th. The energy company reported $10.68 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.90 by $6.78. Cheniere Energy had a return on equity of 32.04% and a net margin of 26.68%.The business had revenue of $5.45 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.48 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $4.33 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 22.9% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts expect that Cheniere Energy, Inc. will post 14.31 earnings per share for the current year.

Cheniere Energy Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 27th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 6th were given a dividend of $0.555 per share. This represents a $2.22 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 6th. Cheniere Energy’s payout ratio is presently 9.14%.

Cheniere Energy declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase program on Thursday, February 26th that permits the company to buyback $10.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the energy company to repurchase up to 21.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are usually an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

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.