Investors Buy Large Volume of Call Options on Cheniere Energy (NYSE:LNG)

Cheniere Energy, Inc. (NYSE:LNG) was the target of some unusual options trading activity on Monday. Stock traders bought 15,303 call options on the stock. This is an increase of 79% compared to the average daily volume of 8,527 call options.

Cheniere Energy Stock Up 1.7%

LNG traded up $4.28 on Monday, reaching $262.92. 404,099 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,565,085. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $241.65 and its 200-day moving average price is $237.37. Cheniere Energy has a 52-week low of $186.20 and a 52-week high of $300.89. The company has a market cap of $55.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 43.20 and a beta of -0.01. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.55, a current ratio of 0.57 and a quick ratio of 0.48.

Cheniere Energy Dividend Announcement

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

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Cheniere Energy by 2.0% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 21,219,557 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $4,124,870,000 after buying an additional 414,022 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp increased its holdings in Cheniere Energy by 2.8% in the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 6,174,695 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $1,200,299,000 after buying an additional 167,622 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Cheniere Energy in the fourth quarter worth approximately $731,774,000. Victory Capital Management Inc. raised its position in Cheniere Energy by 12.5% during the fourth quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 2,279,078 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $443,031,000 after acquiring an additional 253,469 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its stake in Cheniere Energy by 6.3% in the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,263,826 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $440,047,000 after acquiring an additional 134,695 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.26% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have issued reports on LNG. UBS Group set a $290.00 price target on shares of Cheniere Energy in a research report on Wednesday, May 13th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their target price on Cheniere Energy from $276.00 to $312.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 24th. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target on Cheniere Energy from $275.00 to $330.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 7th. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on Cheniere Energy from $313.00 to $308.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 21st. Finally, BMO Capital Markets boosted their price objective on Cheniere Energy from $265.00 to $306.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, March 23rd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have assigned a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Cheniere Energy presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $297.71.

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.