Bank of Montreal Can Raises Stake in Cheniere Energy, Inc. (NYSE:LNG)

Bank of Montreal Can lifted its stake in Cheniere Energy, Inc. (NYSE:LNG) by 77.5% during the third quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 433,686 shares of the energy company’s stock after purchasing an additional 189,396 shares during the period. Bank of Montreal Can’s holdings in Cheniere Energy were worth $77,903,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC grew its stake in Cheniere Energy by 215.7% in the 2nd quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 62,551 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $10,936,000 after acquiring an additional 42,737 shares in the last quarter. Silvercrest Asset Management Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Cheniere Energy in the first quarter valued at approximately $818,000. M&G PLC boosted its holdings in shares of Cheniere Energy by 21.0% in the third quarter. M&G PLC now owns 268,834 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $48,390,000 after purchasing an additional 46,602 shares during the period. Jennison Associates LLC grew its stake in Cheniere Energy by 2.9% in the third quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 1,324,360 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $238,173,000 after purchasing an additional 37,729 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Victory Capital Management Inc. increased its holdings in Cheniere Energy by 2.5% during the 3rd quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 113,635 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $20,436,000 after purchasing an additional 2,768 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.26% of the company’s stock.

Cheniere Energy Stock Performance

Shares of LNG stock opened at $221.90 on Wednesday. Cheniere Energy, Inc. has a 12-month low of $152.31 and a 12-month high of $225.44. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $193.45 and its 200-day simple moving average is $179.78. The company has a current ratio of 1.07, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.41. The company has a market cap of $49.79 billion, a PE ratio of 14.17 and a beta of 0.94.

Cheniere Energy (NYSE:LNG) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The energy company reported $3.93 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.87 by $2.06. The company had revenue of $3.76 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.76 billion. Cheniere Energy had a return on equity of 41.44% and a net margin of 22.70%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 9.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.37 EPS. Analysts expect that Cheniere Energy, Inc. will post 11.26 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Cheniere Energy Cuts Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, November 18th. Investors of record on Friday, November 8th were paid a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.90%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 8th. Cheniere Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 12.77%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Bank of America started coverage on Cheniere Energy in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. They set a “buy” rating and a $215.00 price target on the stock. TD Cowen raised their target price on shares of Cheniere Energy from $202.00 to $242.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Barclays boosted their price target on shares of Cheniere Energy from $199.00 to $202.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 15th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price objective on shares of Cheniere Energy from $201.00 to $217.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price objective on shares of Cheniere Energy from $208.00 to $204.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, August 9th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $212.89.

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.