Verition Fund Management LLC Buys 88,841 Shares of Cheniere Energy, Inc. $LNG

Verition Fund Management LLC raised its position in shares of Cheniere Energy, Inc. (NYSE:LNG) by 160.0% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 144,352 shares of the energy company’s stock after acquiring an additional 88,841 shares during the quarter. Verition Fund Management LLC’s holdings in Cheniere Energy were worth $28,061,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Ameriflex Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Cheniere Energy by 7.3% during the 3rd quarter. Ameriflex Group Inc. now owns 688 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $162,000 after purchasing an additional 47 shares during the period. Quest Investment Management LLC raised its position in Cheniere Energy by 6.1% in the 3rd quarter. Quest Investment Management LLC now owns 875 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $206,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares during the period. Aviso Wealth Management lifted its stake in Cheniere Energy by 2.1% in the fourth quarter. Aviso Wealth Management now owns 2,489 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $484,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares during the last quarter. Hardy Reed LLC lifted its stake in Cheniere Energy by 2.3% in the third quarter. Hardy Reed LLC now owns 2,279 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $536,000 after purchasing an additional 52 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Keel Point LLC boosted its position in shares of Cheniere Energy by 5.2% during the third quarter. Keel Point LLC now owns 1,111 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $261,000 after buying an additional 55 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.26% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on LNG. Citigroup increased their price target on Cheniere Energy from $280.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, April 2nd. Barclays lifted their target price on Cheniere Energy from $259.00 to $271.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 27th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on shares of Cheniere Energy from $276.00 to $312.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on Cheniere Energy from $325.00 to $327.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, June 3rd. Finally, 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. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have assigned a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Cheniere Energy presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $298.63.

Cheniere Energy Price Performance

LNG opened at $240.85 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $50.47 billion and a PE ratio of 39.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.55, a current ratio of 0.57 and a quick ratio of 0.48. The business’s 50-day moving average is $251.29 and its two-hundred day moving average is $231.40. Cheniere Energy, Inc. has a 1 year low of $186.20 and a 1 year high of $300.89.

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

Cheniere Energy Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, May 19th. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 11th were paid a $0.555 dividend. This represents a $2.22 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 11th. Cheniere Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 36.51%.

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

Insider Buying and Selling at Cheniere Energy

In other news, EVP Sean N. Markowitz sold 22,246 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 26th. The stock was 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 represents a 25.79% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Zach Davis sold 29,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $300.00, for a total value 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 position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 0.55% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

About Cheniere Energy

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.