Cheniere Energy, Inc. (NYSE:LNG) Receives $267.94 Consensus Target Price from Analysts

Shares of Cheniere Energy, Inc. (NYSE:LNG) have been assigned an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the twenty ratings firms that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. The average 1 year target price among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $282.00.

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on LNG shares. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on Cheniere Energy from $280.00 to $271.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, March 13th. Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of Cheniere Energy from $259.00 to $271.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 27th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Cheniere Energy from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 18th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of Cheniere Energy from $279.00 to $338.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday. Finally, Scotiabank increased their price target on shares of Cheniere Energy from $266.00 to $285.00 and gave the stock a “sector outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, March 5th.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Cheniere Energy

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in LNG. Dynamic Advisor Solutions LLC boosted its holdings in Cheniere Energy by 1.5% during the third quarter. Dynamic Advisor Solutions LLC now owns 3,268 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $768,000 after buying an additional 47 shares in the last quarter. Childress Capital Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Cheniere Energy by 0.9% in the 3rd quarter. Childress Capital Advisors LLC now owns 5,385 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $1,265,000 after acquiring an additional 47 shares during the period. Ameriflex Group Inc. raised its holdings in Cheniere Energy by 7.3% during the third quarter. Ameriflex Group Inc. now owns 688 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $162,000 after purchasing an additional 47 shares during the last quarter. Howard Capital Management Inc. boosted its position in Cheniere Energy by 3.3% during the third quarter. Howard Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,488 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $350,000 after purchasing an additional 48 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Titleist Asset Management LLC boosted its position in Cheniere Energy by 1.5% during the second quarter. Titleist Asset Management LLC now owns 3,309 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $806,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. 87.26% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Cheniere Energy Stock Performance

NYSE LNG opened at $297.00 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $62.43 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.22 and a beta of 0.25. Cheniere Energy has a 52-week low of $186.20 and a 52-week high of $299.49. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $235.12 and its 200 day moving average price is $220.07. The company has a quick ratio of 0.81, a current ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.74.

Cheniere Energy (NYSE:LNG) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 25th. The energy company reported $10.68 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.90 by $6.78. Cheniere Energy had a return on equity of 32.04% and a net margin of 26.68%.The firm had revenue of $5.45 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.48 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $4.33 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 22.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts expect that Cheniere Energy will post 11.69 earnings per share for the current year.

Cheniere Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 27th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 6th were paid a dividend of $0.555 per share. This represents a $2.22 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 6th. Cheniere Energy’s dividend payout ratio is 9.14%.

Cheniere Energy declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback program on Thursday, February 26th that allows the company to buyback $10.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the energy company to buy up to 21.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are typically a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Cheniere Energy Company Profile

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.