Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC Cuts Stake in Cheniere Energy, Inc. (NYSE:LNG)

Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC lessened its holdings in shares of Cheniere Energy, Inc. (NYSE:LNG) by 38.2% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 19,814 shares of the energy company’s stock after selling 12,225 shares during the period. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC’s holdings in Cheniere Energy were worth $3,196,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Ameriprise Financial Inc. grew its position in Cheniere Energy by 60.5% during the 3rd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 349,951 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $57,748,000 after purchasing an additional 131,904 shares during the last quarter. Sei Investments Co. grew its holdings in shares of Cheniere Energy by 0.8% during the third quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 207,391 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $34,419,000 after buying an additional 1,706 shares during the last quarter. Scotia Capital Inc. increased its position in shares of Cheniere Energy by 1,263.6% in the 3rd quarter. Scotia Capital Inc. now owns 20,290 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $3,367,000 after acquiring an additional 18,802 shares during the period. Royal London Asset Management Ltd. increased its position in shares of Cheniere Energy by 5.3% in the 3rd quarter. Royal London Asset Management Ltd. now owns 120,628 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $20,034,000 after acquiring an additional 6,056 shares during the period. Finally, The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company raised its stake in Cheniere Energy by 5.8% in the 3rd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 4,052,497 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $672,559,000 after acquiring an additional 220,802 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.26% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have weighed in on LNG. UBS Group dropped their price target on Cheniere Energy from $223.00 to $206.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 24th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Cheniere Energy from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, April 8th. TD Cowen lifted their price objective on shares of Cheniere Energy from $178.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, June 17th. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price objective 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, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of Cheniere Energy from $213.00 to $214.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, May 17th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $198.64.

Cheniere Energy Stock Performance

LNG stock opened at $174.08 on Thursday. Cheniere Energy, Inc. has a one year low of $148.57 and a one year high of $183.46. The company has a current ratio of 0.98, a quick ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.58. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $160.28. The firm has a market capitalization of $39.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.48 and a beta of 0.96.

Cheniere Energy (NYSE:LNG) last posted its earnings results on Friday, May 3rd. The energy company reported $2.13 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.30 by ($0.17). The business had revenue of $4.25 billion for 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%. Cheniere Energy’s revenue was down 41.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $6.89 earnings per share. Research analysts predict that Cheniere Energy, Inc. will post 8.33 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Cheniere Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 9th will be given a $0.435 dividend. This represents a $1.74 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.00%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 9th. Cheniere Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 8.48%.

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.