Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp Decreases Stake in Cheniere Energy, Inc. (NYSE:LNG)

Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp cut its holdings in Cheniere Energy, Inc. (NYSE:LNG) by 34.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 1,102,279 shares of the energy company’s stock after selling 583,003 shares during the period. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp owned about 0.49% of Cheniere Energy worth $236,911,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB boosted its stake in Cheniere Energy by 170.5% during the 4th quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 119 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 75 shares during the period. WR Wealth Planners LLC increased its holdings in Cheniere Energy by 373.1% in the fourth quarter. WR Wealth Planners LLC now owns 123 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 97 shares in the last quarter. Kohmann Bosshard Financial Services LLC acquired a new position in Cheniere Energy during the fourth quarter worth $29,000. Adirondack Trust Co. purchased a new stake in shares of Cheniere Energy in the 4th quarter worth about $43,000. Finally, SBI Securities Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of Cheniere Energy in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $46,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.26% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

LNG has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Scotiabank reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Cheniere Energy in a research note on Thursday, March 6th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Cheniere Energy from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 21st. Mizuho increased their target price on Cheniere Energy from $248.00 to $254.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 18th. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Cheniere Energy from $202.00 to $253.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on Cheniere Energy from $213.00 to $235.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 18th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $239.79.

Insider Transactions at Cheniere Energy

In other Cheniere Energy news, Director G Andrea Botta sold 9,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $219.51, for a total value of $1,975,590.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 33,934 shares in the company, valued at $7,448,852.34. This represents a 20.96 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 0.29% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Cheniere Energy Stock Performance

LNG opened at $233.81 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $52.30 billion, a PE ratio of 16.43 and a beta of 0.94. Cheniere Energy, Inc. has a 1 year low of $152.88 and a 1 year high of $257.65. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $225.11 and its 200-day simple moving average is $209.50. The company has a current ratio of 1.07, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.41.

Cheniere Energy (NYSE:LNG) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 20th. The energy company reported $4.33 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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 company had revenue of $4.44 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.44 billion. Sell-side analysts forecast that Cheniere Energy, Inc. will post 11.69 EPS for the current year.

Cheniere Energy Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed 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 0.86%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 7th. Cheniere Energy’s payout ratio is 14.05%.

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.