Allianz Asset Management GmbH Sells 192,681 Shares of Cheniere Energy, Inc. $LNG

Allianz Asset Management GmbH cut its stake in Cheniere Energy, Inc. (NYSE:LNG) by 13.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 1,268,081 shares of the energy company’s stock after selling 192,681 shares during the quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH’s holdings in Cheniere Energy were worth $246,502,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Focus Partners Advisor Solutions LLC increased its stake in shares of Cheniere Energy by 4.4% in the 4th quarter. Focus Partners Advisor Solutions LLC now owns 3,259 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $634,000 after acquiring an additional 136 shares during the last quarter. Fox Run Management L.L.C. grew its position in shares of Cheniere Energy by 441.1% in the 4th quarter. Fox Run Management L.L.C. now owns 7,944 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $1,544,000 after purchasing an additional 6,476 shares during the period. Cerity Partners LLC grew its position in shares of Cheniere Energy by 3.3% in the 4th quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 110,544 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $21,489,000 after purchasing an additional 3,537 shares during the period. Deepwater Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Cheniere Energy in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $4,698,000. Finally, Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Cheniere Energy in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $29,075,000. 87.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages recently issued reports on LNG. UBS Group set a $290.00 price objective on Cheniere Energy in a research report on Wednesday, May 13th. TD Cowen boosted their price objective on Cheniere Energy from $265.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, May 11th. Wolfe Research reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $300.00 price objective on shares of Cheniere Energy in a research report on Tuesday, June 2nd. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on Cheniere Energy from $313.00 to $308.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on Cheniere Energy from $276.00 to $312.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 24th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have given a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Cheniere Energy presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $298.63.

Cheniere Energy Trading Up 1.0%

NYSE:LNG opened at $239.07 on Wednesday. Cheniere Energy, Inc. has a twelve month low of $186.20 and a twelve month high of $300.89. The company has a quick ratio of 0.48, a current ratio of 0.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.55. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $253.88 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $230.67. The company has a market cap of $50.10 billion and a P/E ratio of 39.32.

Cheniere Energy (NYSE:LNG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The energy company reported ($16.65) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.25 by ($20.90). Cheniere Energy had a return on equity of 38.95% and a net margin of 7.23%.The firm had revenue of $5.87 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.69 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.57 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 7.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts expect that Cheniere Energy, Inc. will post 14.93 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Cheniere Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, May 19th. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 11th were given a dividend of $0.555 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 11th. This represents a $2.22 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.9%. Cheniere Energy’s dividend payout ratio is 36.51%.

Cheniere Energy announced that its board has approved a stock repurchase plan on Thursday, February 26th that authorizes the company to repurchase $10.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the energy company to reacquire up to 21.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are generally an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Cheniere Energy news, EVP Sean N. Markowitz sold 22,246 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $290.98, for a total transaction of $6,473,141.08. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 64,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $18,622,720. This represents a 25.79% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CFO Zach Davis sold 29,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $300.00, for a total value of $8,700,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 87,146 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $26,143,800. This trade represents a 24.97% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Corporate insiders own 0.55% of the company’s stock.

About Cheniere Energy

Cheniere Energy, Inc is a U.S.-based energy company that develops, owns and operates liquefied natural gas (LNG) infrastructure and markets LNG to global customers. The company’s core activities include natural gas liquefaction, long‑term and short‑term LNG sales and marketing, and the associated midstream services required to move gas from production basins to international markets. Cheniere focuses on converting domestic natural gas into LNG for export, providing a bridge between North American supply and overseas demand.

Cheniere’s principal operating assets are large-scale LNG export terminals located on the U.S.