Cheniere Energy, Inc. (NYSE:LNG) Short Interest Update

Cheniere Energy, Inc. (NYSE:LNG) was the target of a significant drop in short interest in August. As of August 31st, there was short interest totalling 3,570,000 shares, a drop of 22.9% from the August 15th total of 4,630,000 shares. Currently, 1.6% of the company’s stock are sold short. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 1,690,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 2.1 days.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price objective on shares of Cheniere Energy from $208.00 to $204.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 9th. Sanford C. Bernstein began coverage on shares of Cheniere Energy in a report on Monday, June 24th. They issued an “outperform” rating on the stock. Barclays raised their target price on Cheniere Energy from $194.00 to $199.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 17th. Finally, TD Cowen boosted their price target on Cheniere Energy from $178.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, June 17th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Cheniere Energy currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $196.25.

Cheniere Energy Stock Performance

Cheniere Energy stock traded down $1.75 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $180.80. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,135,747 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,795,077. The firm has a market cap of $41.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.81 and a beta of 0.95. Cheniere Energy has a twelve month low of $152.31 and a twelve month high of $187.44. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $180.48 and a 200-day moving average price of $167.32. The company has a current ratio of 1.02, a quick ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.63.

Cheniere Energy (NYSE:LNG) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 8th. The energy company reported $3.84 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.71 by $2.13. Cheniere Energy had a net margin of 27.05% and a return on equity of 39.42%. The firm had revenue of $3.30 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.52 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $5.61 earnings per share. Cheniere Energy’s quarterly revenue was down 19.6% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts predict that Cheniere Energy will post 9.74 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Cheniere Energy announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback program on Monday, June 17th that authorizes the company to repurchase $4.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the energy company to repurchase up to 9.6% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are usually a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Cheniere Energy

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Sanctuary Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Cheniere Energy during the second quarter worth approximately $7,497,000. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL bought a new stake in Cheniere Energy during the 2nd quarter valued at $30,000. Maven Securities LTD boosted its position in Cheniere Energy by 41.4% during the 2nd quarter. Maven Securities LTD now owns 2,502 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $437,000 after acquiring an additional 733 shares during the period. New Wave Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Cheniere Energy in the second quarter worth $614,000. Finally, Graham Capital Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Cheniere Energy by 4.9% during the second quarter. Graham Capital Wealth Management LLC now owns 29,390 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $5,138,000 after purchasing an additional 1,380 shares during the period. 87.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.