Natixis Advisors LLC Has $17.80 Million Stock Holdings in Cheniere Energy, Inc. (NYSE:LNG)

Natixis Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Cheniere Energy, Inc. (NYSE:LNG) by 22.0% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 82,835 shares of the energy company’s stock after buying an additional 14,928 shares during the quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC’s holdings in Cheniere Energy were worth $17,799,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of LNG. Clearstead Trust LLC raised its stake in Cheniere Energy by 84.1% in the 4th quarter. Clearstead Trust LLC now owns 3,681 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $791,000 after purchasing an additional 1,681 shares in the last quarter. Catalyst Funds Management Pty Ltd acquired a new stake in Cheniere Energy in the 4th quarter worth about $5,028,000. Poinciana Advisors Group LLC acquired a new stake in Cheniere Energy in the 4th quarter worth about $208,000. United Capital Management of KS Inc. raised its stake in Cheniere Energy by 14.8% in the 4th quarter. United Capital Management of KS Inc. now owns 24,017 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $5,160,000 after purchasing an additional 3,104 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wellington Shields & Co. LLC raised its stake in Cheniere Energy by 204.0% in the 4th quarter. Wellington Shields & Co. LLC now owns 1,371 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $295,000 after purchasing an additional 920 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.26% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Cheniere Energy news, Director G Andrea Botta sold 9,000 shares of the business’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 transaction of $1,975,590.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 33,934 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,448,852.34. The trade was a 20.96 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 0.29% of the company’s stock.

Cheniere Energy Trading Up 0.7 %

Shares of Cheniere Energy stock opened at $224.07 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $50.12 billion, a PE ratio of 15.75 and a beta of 0.94. 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 firm’s 50 day moving average is $224.84 and its 200 day moving average is $208.17. Cheniere Energy, Inc. has a 1 year low of $152.88 and a 1 year high of $257.65.

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

Cheniere Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 21st. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 7th were issued a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.89%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 7th. Cheniere Energy’s payout ratio is 14.05%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have weighed in on the stock. Argus assumed coverage on shares of Cheniere Energy in a research note on Tuesday. They issued a “buy” rating and a $255.00 price objective for the company. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of Cheniere Energy from $213.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 18th. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Cheniere Energy from $202.00 to $253.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their target price on shares of Cheniere Energy from $237.00 to $255.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 21st. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on shares of Cheniere Energy from $195.00 to $255.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Cheniere Energy presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $239.79.

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.