Whittier Trust Co. Lowers Holdings in Cheniere Energy, Inc. (NYSE:LNG)

Whittier Trust Co. trimmed its position in Cheniere Energy, Inc. (NYSE:LNG) by 19.8% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 809 shares of the energy company’s stock after selling 200 shares during the quarter. Whittier Trust Co.’s holdings in Cheniere Energy were worth $141,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

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

Cheniere Energy Price Performance

NYSE:LNG opened at $183.89 on Friday. Cheniere Energy, Inc. has a one year low of $152.31 and a one year high of $187.44. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.58, a quick ratio of 0.92 and a current ratio of 0.98. The stock has a market cap of $42.09 billion, a PE ratio of 8.96 and a beta of 0.96. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $177.92 and a 200 day moving average price of $165.03.

Cheniere Energy (NYSE:LNG) last posted its 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. The company had revenue of $3.30 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.52 billion. Cheniere Energy had a return on equity of 48.19% and a net margin of 28.55%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 19.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $5.61 earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that Cheniere Energy, Inc. will post 8.29 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Cheniere Energy announced that its board has initiated a stock repurchase program on Monday, June 17th that allows the company to buyback $4.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the energy company to buy up to 9.6% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are usually an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Cheniere Energy Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 9th were paid a dividend of $0.435 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 9th. This represents a $1.74 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.95%. Cheniere Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 8.48%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

LNG has been the topic of a number of research reports. Stifel Nicolaus cut their price objective on Cheniere Energy from $208.00 to $204.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, August 9th. Sanford C. Bernstein started coverage on Cheniere Energy in a research note on Monday, June 24th. They issued an “outperform” rating on the stock. TD Cowen upped their target price on 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. upped their target price on Cheniere Energy from $213.00 to $214.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, May 17th. Finally, Barclays increased their price target on Cheniere Energy from $194.00 to $199.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 17th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $196.40.

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.