WealthPlan Investment Management LLC Decreases Stake in Cheniere Energy, Inc. $LNG

WealthPlan Investment Management LLC decreased its position in Cheniere Energy, Inc. (NYSE:LNG) by 41.5% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 10,877 shares of the energy company’s stock after selling 7,719 shares during the period. WealthPlan Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Cheniere Energy were worth $2,114,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Ameriflex Group Inc. increased its stake in Cheniere Energy by 7.3% in the 3rd quarter. Ameriflex Group Inc. now owns 688 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $162,000 after buying an additional 47 shares during the last quarter. Howard Capital Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Cheniere Energy by 3.3% during the 3rd quarter. Howard Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,488 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $350,000 after purchasing an additional 48 shares during the last quarter. Quest Investment Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Cheniere Energy by 6.1% during 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 last quarter. Hardy Reed LLC increased its stake in shares of Cheniere Energy by 2.3% during the 3rd 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 increased its stake in shares of Cheniere Energy by 5.2% during the 3rd quarter. Keel Point LLC now owns 1,111 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $261,000 after purchasing an additional 55 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.26% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on LNG shares. Bank of America raised their price target on shares of Cheniere Energy from $296.00 to $322.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, March 20th. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Cheniere Energy from a “buy (b)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research note on Monday, May 11th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price objective on shares of Cheniere Energy from $275.00 to $330.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 7th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on shares of Cheniere Energy from $313.00 to $308.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 21st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on shares of Cheniere Energy from $338.00 to $325.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 14th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have issued a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $293.50.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, 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 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. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Sean N. Markowitz sold 22,246 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $290.98, for a total transaction of $6,473,141.08. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 64,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $18,622,720. The trade was a 25.79% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Corporate insiders own 0.55% of the company’s stock.

Cheniere Energy Trading Down 0.0%

NYSE:LNG opened at $241.77 on Monday. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $264.03 and its 200-day moving average price is $227.55. Cheniere Energy, Inc. has a 52 week low of $186.20 and a 52 week high of $300.89. The company has a quick ratio of 0.48, a current ratio of 0.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.55. The stock has a market cap of $50.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.76 and a beta of 0.07.

Cheniere Energy (NYSE:LNG) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The energy company reported ($16.65) EPS 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 for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.69 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.57 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 7.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Cheniere Energy, Inc. will post 15.2 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Cheniere Energy Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 19th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 11th will be issued a dividend of $0.555 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 11th. This represents a $2.22 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.9%. Cheniere Energy’s dividend payout ratio is presently 36.51%.

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

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.