ING Groep NV Lowers Position in Cheniere Energy, Inc. (NYSE:LNG)

ING Groep NV cut its stake in Cheniere Energy, Inc. (NYSE:LNG) by 64.7% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 35,000 shares of the energy company’s stock after selling 64,200 shares during the quarter. ING Groep NV’s holdings in Cheniere Energy were worth $7,520,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company raised its stake in shares of Cheniere Energy by 3.2% in the third quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 5,438,428 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $978,047,000 after purchasing an additional 167,575 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its stake in shares of Cheniere Energy by 195.1% in the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 4,200,456 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $755,410,000 after purchasing an additional 2,776,920 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA raised its stake in shares of Cheniere Energy by 91.4% in the third quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 3,747,370 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $673,927,000 after purchasing an additional 1,789,919 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC raised its stake in shares of Cheniere Energy by 11.0% in the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 1,793,989 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $322,631,000 after purchasing an additional 178,318 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. raised its stake in shares of Cheniere Energy by 61.2% in the fourth quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 1,664,439 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $357,638,000 after purchasing an additional 631,787 shares during the last quarter. 87.26% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Cheniere Energy Price Performance

Shares of NYSE LNG opened at $220.90 on Friday. Cheniere Energy, Inc. has a 1-year low of $152.31 and a 1-year high of $257.65. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $222.92 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $203.27. The company has a current ratio of 1.07, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.41. The firm has a market cap of $49.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.11 and a beta of 0.98.

Cheniere Energy (NYSE:LNG) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The energy company reported $4.33 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.74 by $1.59. Cheniere Energy had a return on equity of 41.44% and a net margin of 22.70%. The firm had revenue of $4.44 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.44 billion. Analysts anticipate that Cheniere Energy, Inc. will post 12.77 earnings per share for the current year.

Cheniere Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 21st. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 7th were issued a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.91%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 7th. Cheniere Energy’s payout ratio is currently 14.05%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently commented on LNG. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Cheniere Energy from $213.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 18th. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on Cheniere Energy from $195.00 to $255.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Scotiabank upped their target price on Cheniere Energy from $242.00 to $247.00 and gave the company a “sector outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. TD Cowen upped their target price on Cheniere Energy from $242.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, January 27th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus upped their target price on Cheniere Energy from $237.00 to $255.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $235.75.

About Cheniere Energy

Cheniere Energy, Inc, an energy infrastructure company, primarily engages in the liquefied natural gas (LNG) related businesses in the United States. It owns and operates the Sabine Pass LNG terminal in Cameron Parish, Louisiana; and the Corpus Christi LNG terminal near Corpus Christi, Texas. The company also owns Creole Trail pipeline, a 94-mile natural gas supply pipeline that interconnects the Sabine Pass LNG Terminal with several interstate and intrastate pipelines; and operates Corpus Christi pipeline, a 21.5-mile natural gas supply pipeline that interconnects the Corpus Christi LNG terminal with various interstate and intrastate natural gas pipelines.