Westwood Holdings Group Inc. Reduces Position in Cheniere Energy, Inc. (NYSE:LNG)

Westwood Holdings Group Inc. trimmed its stake in Cheniere Energy, Inc. (NYSE:LNG) by 0.7% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 1,076,620 shares of the energy company’s stock after selling 7,199 shares during the period. Cheniere Energy accounts for approximately 0.9% of Westwood Holdings Group Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 25th largest position. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. owned about 0.47% of Cheniere Energy worth $188,225,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Signature Wealth Management Group raised its position in shares of Cheniere Energy by 1.4% during the 2nd quarter. Signature Wealth Management Group now owns 4,758 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $832,000 after buying an additional 66 shares in the last quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Cheniere Energy by 57.6% in 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. E&G Advisors LP boosted its holdings in shares of Cheniere Energy by 5.2% in the 1st quarter. E&G Advisors LP now owns 1,420 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $229,000 after purchasing an additional 70 shares during the period. Syon Capital LLC increased its position in shares of Cheniere Energy by 4.7% during the 4th quarter. Syon Capital LLC now owns 1,618 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $276,000 after purchasing an additional 73 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Accordant Advisory Group Inc raised its holdings in Cheniere Energy by 0.4% during the 2nd quarter. Accordant Advisory Group Inc now owns 19,383 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $3,389,000 after buying an additional 76 shares during the period. 87.26% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

LNG has been the subject of several analyst reports. Barclays raised their target price on shares of Cheniere Energy from $194.00 to $199.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 17th. 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 research note on Monday, June 17th. Stifel Nicolaus cut their target price on Cheniere Energy from $208.00 to $204.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 9th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein assumed coverage on Cheniere Energy in a report on Monday, June 24th. They issued an “outperform” rating on the stock. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $196.25.

Cheniere Energy Price Performance

Shares of LNG stock opened at $180.61 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $41.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.80 and a beta of 0.95. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.63, a current ratio of 1.02 and a quick ratio of 0.93. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $180.76 and its 200 day moving average is $167.71. Cheniere Energy, Inc. has a 1-year low of $152.31 and a 1-year high of $187.44.

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

Cheniere Energy declared that its board has initiated a stock buyback plan on Monday, June 17th that authorizes the company to buyback $4.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the energy company to reacquire up to 9.6% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are usually 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.