Cheniere Energy, Inc. (NYSE:LNG) Receives $225.00 Consensus Price Target from Brokerages

Shares of Cheniere Energy, Inc. (NYSE:LNG) have been given an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by the eleven ratings firms that are currently covering the company, Marketbeat reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 1 year price target among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $225.00.

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on LNG shares. Barclays increased their price target on shares of Cheniere Energy from $199.00 to $202.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 15th. Bank of America started coverage on shares of Cheniere Energy in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. They set a “buy” rating and a $215.00 target price for the company. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price objective on Cheniere Energy from $204.00 to $237.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. UBS Group boosted their target price on Cheniere Energy from $232.00 to $265.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Cheniere Energy from $213.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 18th.

Cheniere Energy Stock Performance

Cheniere Energy stock opened at $213.07 on Friday. Cheniere Energy has a fifty-two week low of $152.31 and a fifty-two week high of $228.10. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $208.36 and its 200-day simple moving average is $189.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.41, a current ratio of 1.07 and a quick ratio of 0.98. The company has a market cap of $47.81 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.61 and a beta of 0.97.

Cheniere Energy (NYSE:LNG) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The energy company reported $3.93 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.87 by $2.06. The firm had revenue of $3.76 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.76 billion. Cheniere Energy had a net margin of 22.70% and a return on equity of 41.44%. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 9.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.37 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Cheniere Energy will post 11.25 EPS for the current year.

Cheniere Energy Cuts Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, November 18th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 8th were given a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 8th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.94%. Cheniere Energy’s dividend payout ratio is 12.77%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Cheniere Energy

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in LNG. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its holdings in Cheniere Energy by 195.1% in the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 4,200,456 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $755,410,000 after buying an additional 2,776,920 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lifted its position in shares of Cheniere Energy by 1,490.1% during the 2nd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 1,957,451 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $342,221,000 after buying an additional 1,834,347 shares during the period. Two Sigma Advisers LP boosted its stake in Cheniere Energy by 328.2% in the 3rd quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP now owns 894,600 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $160,885,000 after buying an additional 685,662 shares in the last quarter. Darlington Partners Capital Management LP increased its position in shares of Cheniere Energy by 74.6% during the 2nd quarter. Darlington Partners Capital Management LP now owns 1,514,155 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $264,720,000 after purchasing an additional 647,096 shares in the last quarter. Finally, The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company boosted its position in Cheniere Energy by 8.5% in the second quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 5,270,853 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $921,503,000 after buying an additional 413,744 shares in the last quarter. 87.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.