MCF Advisors LLC Invests $26,000 in Cheniere Energy, Inc. (NYSE:LNG)

MCF Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Cheniere Energy, Inc. (NYSE:LNG) in the second quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund bought 148 shares of the energy company’s stock, valued at approximately $26,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Crewe Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Cheniere Energy in the 1st quarter valued at about $26,000. Lynx Investment Advisory purchased a new stake in shares of Cheniere Energy in the second quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Cooksen Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Cheniere Energy in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Riverview Trust Co bought a new position in Cheniere Energy in the first quarter worth approximately $29,000. Finally, Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC increased its holdings in Cheniere Energy by 57.6% during the 2nd quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC now owns 186 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 68 shares during the period. 87.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have weighed in on LNG. Sanford C. Bernstein initiated coverage on Cheniere Energy in a report on Monday, June 24th. They issued an “outperform” rating for the company. TD Cowen upped their price objective on shares of Cheniere Energy from $178.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, June 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased 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. Barclays boosted their price target on shares of Cheniere Energy from $194.00 to $199.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 17th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price objective on shares of Cheniere Energy from $208.00 to $204.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 9th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $196.00.

Cheniere Energy Trading Down 0.4 %

NYSE LNG opened at $180.64 on Friday. Cheniere Energy, Inc. has a 52 week low of $152.31 and a 52 week high of $187.44. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $179.85 and a 200 day moving average price of $166.12. The company has a quick ratio of 0.93, a current ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.63. The firm has a market cap of $41.35 billion, a PE ratio of 8.80 and a beta of 0.95.

Cheniere Energy (NYSE:LNG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 8th. The energy company reported $3.84 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.71 by $2.13. Cheniere Energy had a net margin of 27.05% and a return on equity of 39.42%. The business had revenue of $3.30 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.52 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $5.61 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 19.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Cheniere Energy, Inc. will post 9.74 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Cheniere Energy announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback program on Monday, June 17th that allows the company to buyback $4.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the energy company to reacquire up to 9.6% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are typically a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Cheniere Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 16th. Investors of record on Friday, August 9th were given a dividend of $0.435 per share. This represents a $1.74 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.96%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 9th. Cheniere Energy’s dividend payout ratio is currently 8.48%.

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.