Cheniere Energy, Inc. (NYSE:LNG) Sees Significant Drop in Short Interest

Cheniere Energy, Inc. (NYSE:LNG) saw a large decline in short interest in the month of August. As of August 31st, there was short interest totalling 3,570,000 shares, a decline of 22.9% from the August 15th total of 4,630,000 shares. Approximately 1.6% of the shares of the company are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 1,690,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 2.1 days.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Cheniere Energy

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in LNG. Sanctuary Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Cheniere Energy during the second quarter valued at $7,497,000. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL purchased a new stake in Cheniere Energy during the 2nd quarter valued at about $30,000. Maven Securities LTD increased its stake in Cheniere Energy by 41.4% during the 2nd quarter. Maven Securities LTD now owns 2,502 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $437,000 after purchasing an additional 733 shares in the last quarter. New Wave Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Cheniere Energy in the second quarter worth about $614,000. Finally, Graham Capital Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in Cheniere Energy by 4.9% in the second quarter. Graham Capital Wealth Management LLC now owns 29,390 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $5,138,000 after buying an additional 1,380 shares during the last quarter. 87.26% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently commented on LNG shares. TD Cowen raised their price objective on shares of Cheniere Energy from $178.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, June 17th. Sanford C. Bernstein began coverage on Cheniere Energy in a research note on Monday, June 24th. They issued an “outperform” rating for the company. Barclays upped their price target on Cheniere Energy from $194.00 to $199.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 17th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price objective on shares of Cheniere Energy from $208.00 to $204.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, August 9th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $196.25.

Cheniere Energy Trading Up 1.0 %

Shares of LNG stock traded up $1.84 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $179.05. The stock had a trading volume of 1,083,065 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,799,309. The company has a current ratio of 1.02, a quick ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.63. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $180.24 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $166.86. The firm has a market capitalization of $40.99 billion, a PE ratio of 8.72 and a beta of 0.95. Cheniere Energy has a 52-week low of $152.31 and a 52-week high of $187.44.

Cheniere Energy (NYSE:LNG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 8th. The energy company reported $3.84 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.71 by $2.13. The business had revenue of $3.30 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.52 billion. Cheniere Energy had a return on equity of 39.42% and a net margin of 27.05%. Cheniere Energy’s quarterly revenue was down 19.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $5.61 EPS. Equities analysts expect that Cheniere Energy will post 9.74 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Cheniere Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 9th were issued a $0.435 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 9th. This represents a $1.74 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.97%. Cheniere Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 8.48%.

Cheniere Energy declared that its board has approved a share buyback plan on Monday, June 17th that permits the company to repurchase $4.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the energy company to buy up to 9.6% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are often an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

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.