Achmea Investment Management B.V. Increases Stake in Cheniere Energy, Inc. (NYSE:LNG)

Achmea Investment Management B.V. increased its stake in Cheniere Energy, Inc. (NYSE:LNG) by 136.3% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 22,535 shares of the energy company’s stock after acquiring an additional 12,998 shares during the quarter. Achmea Investment Management B.V.’s holdings in Cheniere Energy were worth $4,842,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company increased its holdings in shares of Cheniere Energy by 3.2% in the 3rd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 5,438,428 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $978,047,000 after purchasing an additional 167,575 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its holdings in shares of Cheniere Energy by 195.1% in the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 4,200,456 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $755,410,000 after purchasing an additional 2,776,920 shares in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA increased its holdings in shares of Cheniere Energy by 91.4% in the 3rd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 3,747,370 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $673,927,000 after purchasing an additional 1,789,919 shares in the last quarter. Amundi increased its holdings in shares of Cheniere Energy by 19.9% in the 4th quarter. Amundi now owns 2,696,002 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $606,907,000 after purchasing an additional 448,189 shares in the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC increased its holdings in shares of Cheniere Energy by 11.0% in the 3rd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 1,793,989 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $322,631,000 after purchasing an additional 178,318 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.26% of the company’s stock.

Cheniere Energy Price Performance

Cheniere Energy stock opened at $218.61 on Friday. Cheniere Energy, Inc. has a 12-month low of $152.88 and a 12-month high of $257.65. The stock has a market capitalization of $48.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.36 and a beta of 0.94. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $224.85 and its two-hundred day moving average is $207.29. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.41, a current ratio of 1.07 and a quick ratio of 0.98.

Cheniere Energy (NYSE:LNG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The energy company reported $4.33 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.74 by $1.59. Cheniere Energy had a net margin of 20.71% and a return on equity of 37.19%. The company had revenue of $4.44 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.44 billion. Equities analysts predict that Cheniere Energy, Inc. will post 11.69 earnings per share for the current year.

Cheniere Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 21st. Investors of record on Friday, February 7th were given a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 7th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.91%. Cheniere Energy’s dividend payout ratio is presently 14.05%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director G Andrea Botta sold 9,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $219.51, for a total value of $1,975,590.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 33,934 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,448,852.34. This trade represents a 20.96 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.29% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

LNG has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Barclays increased their price target on shares of Cheniere Energy from $202.00 to $253.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, January 16th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price objective on shares of Cheniere Energy from $234.00 to $261.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. UBS Group increased their price objective on shares of Cheniere Energy from $232.00 to $265.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Scotiabank reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Cheniere Energy in a research note on Thursday, March 6th. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on shares of Cheniere Energy from $195.00 to $255.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $236.33.

Cheniere Energy Company 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.