Cheniere Energy (NYSE:LNG) Lowered to Hold Rating by Zacks Research

Cheniere Energy (NYSE:LNG) was downgraded by stock analysts at Zacks Research from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report issued on Wednesday,Zacks.com reports.

LNG has been the topic of several other reports. TD Cowen increased their target price on shares of Cheniere Energy from $265.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, May 11th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their target price on shares of Cheniere Energy from $276.00 to $312.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 24th. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Cheniere Energy from a “buy (b)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research note on Monday, May 11th. Scotiabank reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Cheniere Energy in a research note on Wednesday, May 13th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets increased their target price on shares of Cheniere Energy from $265.00 to $306.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, March 23rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have given a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $298.63.

Cheniere Energy Stock Performance

Shares of LNG stock opened at $239.78 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $50.25 billion and a P/E ratio of 39.44. The company has a current ratio of 0.57, a quick ratio of 0.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.55. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $251.98 and its 200 day moving average is $231.14. Cheniere Energy has a 12 month low of $186.20 and a 12 month high of $300.89.

Cheniere Energy (NYSE:LNG) last posted its 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 the consensus estimate of $5.69 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.57 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 7.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Cheniere Energy will post 14.93 earnings per share for the current year.

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CFO Zach Davis sold 29,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, March 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $300.00, for a total value of $8,700,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 87,146 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $26,143,800. This represents a 24.97% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Sean N. Markowitz sold 22,246 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 directly owned 64,000 shares in the company, valued at $18,622,720. The trade was a 25.79% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 0.55% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Cheniere Energy

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Financial Life Planners bought a new position in shares of Cheniere Energy in the 1st quarter worth $26,000. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd bought a new position in shares of Cheniere Energy during the 3rd quarter valued at $27,000. Strive Financial Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Cheniere Energy during the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Kohmann Bosshard Financial Services LLC bought a new position in shares of Cheniere Energy during the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Finally, Optiver Holding B.V. grew its holdings in shares of Cheniere Energy by 54.5% during the 1st quarter. Optiver Holding B.V. now owns 136 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $39,000 after purchasing an additional 48 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 87.26% 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.