Cheniere Energy, Inc. (NYSE:LNG) Shares Sold by Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio

Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio lowered its holdings in shares of Cheniere Energy, Inc. (NYSE:LNG) by 8.8% in the first quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 92,980 shares of the energy company’s stock after selling 8,983 shares during the quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio’s holdings in Cheniere Energy were worth $14,996,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Cheniere Energy by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 22,529,191 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $3,845,958,000 after buying an additional 151,311 shares in the last quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board grew its holdings in shares of Cheniere Energy by 10.9% during the first quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 1,960,944 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $316,261,000 after buying an additional 192,934 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Cheniere Energy during the fourth quarter worth about $308,910,000. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp grew its holdings in shares of Cheniere Energy by 12.8% during the first quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp now owns 1,601,172 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $255,372,000 after buying an additional 181,886 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Jennison Associates LLC grew its holdings in shares of Cheniere Energy by 13.9% during the first quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 1,384,125 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $223,232,000 after buying an additional 169,072 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.26% of the company’s stock.

Cheniere Energy Price Performance

LNG traded up $1.52 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $179.20. The company had a trading volume of 79,700 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,885,424. The company has a market cap of $41.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.69 and a beta of 0.96. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $167.59. The company has a current ratio of 0.98, a quick ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.58. Cheniere Energy, Inc. has a 1-year low of $152.31 and a 1-year high of $184.62.

Cheniere Energy (NYSE:LNG) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, May 3rd. The energy company reported $2.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.30 by ($0.17). The company had revenue of $4.25 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.97 billion. Cheniere Energy had a net margin of 28.55% and a return on equity of 48.19%. The company’s revenue was down 41.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $6.89 earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that Cheniere Energy, Inc. will post 8.29 earnings per share for the current year.

Cheniere Energy announced that its board has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Monday, June 17th that allows the company to buyback $4.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the energy company to reacquire up to 9.6% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are typically an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Cheniere Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 9th will be paid a dividend of $0.435 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 9th. This represents a $1.74 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.97%. Cheniere Energy’s payout ratio is 8.48%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

LNG has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Redburn Atlantic assumed coverage on shares of Cheniere Energy in a report on Tuesday, April 16th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $162.00 price target for the company. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Cheniere Energy from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, April 8th. TD Cowen boosted their target price on shares of Cheniere Energy from $178.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, June 17th. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their target price on shares of Cheniere Energy from $204.00 to $208.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, May 6th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein started coverage on shares of Cheniere Energy in a research note on Monday, June 24th. They set an “outperform” rating for the company. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $199.09.

Cheniere Energy Company Profile

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.