Cheniere Energy (NYSE:LNG) Announces Quarterly Earnings Results

Cheniere Energy (NYSE:LNG - Get Free Report) posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday. The energy company reported $4.33 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.74 by $1.59, Zacks reports. Cheniere Energy had a net margin of 22.70% and a return on equity of 41.44%. The company had revenue of $4.44 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.44 billion.

Cheniere Energy Stock Down 2.7 %

Shares of NYSE LNG traded down $6.02 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $220.90. 2,487,404 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,424,408. The company has a quick ratio of 0.98, a current ratio of 1.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.41. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $222.92 and its 200-day simple moving average is $203.27. Cheniere Energy has a one year low of $152.31 and a one year high of $257.65. The company has a market cap of $49.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.11 and a beta of 0.98.

Cheniere Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 21st. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 7th will be paid a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 7th. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.91%. Cheniere Energy's dividend payout ratio is presently 14.05%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Cheniere Energy from $202.00 to $253.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Cheniere Energy from $213.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 18th. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on shares of Cheniere Energy from $195.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. UBS Group increased their price objective on shares of Cheniere Energy from $232.00 to $265.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price objective on shares of Cheniere Energy from $234.00 to $261.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $235.75.

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.