Cheniere Energy, Inc. (NYSE:LNG) Shares Sold by Principal Financial Group Inc.

Principal Financial Group Inc. cut its stake in Cheniere Energy, Inc. (NYSE:LNG) by 5.5% in the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 20,419 shares of the energy company’s stock after selling 1,185 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in Cheniere Energy were worth $3,672,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Russell Investments Group Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of Cheniere Energy in the first quarter valued at approximately $34,000. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC raised its position in Cheniere Energy by 1.6% during the first quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC now owns 8,555 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $1,380,000 after acquiring an additional 138 shares during the period. Bessemer Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Cheniere Energy by 607.7% during the first quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 7,919 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $1,277,000 after purchasing an additional 6,800 shares in the last quarter. Lake Street Advisors Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Cheniere Energy in the first quarter valued at about $282,000. Finally, Natixis increased its stake in shares of Cheniere Energy by 43.6% during the first quarter. Natixis now owns 6,186 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $998,000 after purchasing an additional 1,879 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.26% of the company’s stock.

Cheniere Energy Stock Up 1.9 %

Cheniere Energy stock opened at $224.79 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $50.44 billion, a PE ratio of 14.35 and a beta of 0.94. 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 stock’s fifty day moving average is $191.05 and its two-hundred day moving average is $178.13. Cheniere Energy, Inc. has a 1-year low of $152.31 and a 1-year high of $225.27.

Cheniere Energy (NYSE:LNG) last posted its earnings results 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 during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.76 billion. Cheniere Energy had a return on equity of 41.44% and a net margin of 22.70%. The firm’s revenue was down 9.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.37 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Cheniere Energy, Inc. will post 11.26 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Cheniere Energy Cuts Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, November 18th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 8th were issued a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.89%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 8th. Cheniere Energy’s payout ratio is 12.77%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

LNG has been the topic of several recent research reports. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their target price on shares of Cheniere Energy from $201.00 to $217.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. TD Cowen lifted their price target on Cheniere Energy from $192.00 to $202.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. Barclays raised their price objective 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 initiated coverage on Cheniere Energy in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $215.00 price target on the stock. Finally, 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 report on Friday, August 9th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Cheniere Energy has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $208.44.

Cheniere Energy 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.