Tower Research Capital LLC TRC Buys 3,115 Shares of Cheniere Energy, Inc. (NYSE:LNG)

Tower Research Capital LLC TRC increased its stake in shares of Cheniere Energy, Inc. (NYSE:LNG - Free Report) by 929.9% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 3,450 shares of the energy company's stock after purchasing an additional 3,115 shares during the quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC's holdings in Cheniere Energy were worth $741,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Norges Bank bought a new position in Cheniere Energy in the 4th quarter valued at $629,197,000. Ninety One UK Ltd boosted its holdings in Cheniere Energy by 1,400.7% in the fourth quarter. Ninety One UK Ltd now owns 1,509,717 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $324,393,000 after acquiring an additional 1,409,116 shares during the last quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. increased its position in Cheniere Energy by 61.2% in the fourth quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 1,664,439 shares of the energy company's stock worth $357,638,000 after purchasing an additional 631,787 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in Cheniere Energy during the 4th quarter worth about $130,772,000. Finally, Proficio Capital Partners LLC lifted its position in Cheniere Energy by 18,281.6% during the 4th quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 575,897 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $123,743,000 after purchasing an additional 572,764 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.26% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director G Andrea Botta sold 9,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the transaction, 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 position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 0.26% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently weighed in on LNG. Raymond James reissued a "strong-buy" rating on shares of Cheniere Energy in a research note on Wednesday. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on Cheniere Energy from $195.00 to $255.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. UBS Group reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $277.00 price objective on shares of Cheniere Energy in a research note on Tuesday, March 18th. Scotiabank reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of Cheniere Energy in a research note on Thursday, March 6th. Finally, TD Cowen raised their target price on Cheniere Energy from $242.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, January 27th. Fifteen analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $245.15.

Cheniere Energy Trading Up 0.4 %

LNG opened at $233.23 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $51.97 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.39 and a beta of 0.67. 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, Inc. has a 12 month low of $153.03 and a 12 month high of $257.65. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $221.95 and its 200 day simple moving average is $216.52.

Cheniere Energy (NYSE:LNG - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 20th. The energy company reported $4.33 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.74 by $1.59. Cheniere Energy had a return on equity of 37.19% and a net margin of 20.71%. The company had revenue of $4.44 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.44 billion. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Cheniere Energy, Inc. will post 11.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Cheniere Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 21st. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 7th were given a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.86%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 7th. Cheniere Energy's dividend payout ratio is presently 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.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding LNG? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Cheniere Energy, Inc. (NYSE:LNG - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.