Viking Fund Management LLC Sells 9,000 Shares of Cheniere Energy, Inc. (NYSE:LNG)

Viking Fund Management LLC trimmed its position in Cheniere Energy, Inc. (NYSE:LNG) by 18.8% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 39,000 shares of the energy company’s stock after selling 9,000 shares during the quarter. Cheniere Energy accounts for approximately 1.3% of Viking Fund Management LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 26th biggest holding. Viking Fund Management LLC’s holdings in Cheniere Energy were worth $8,380,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its position in Cheniere Energy by 195.1% in the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 4,200,456 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $755,410,000 after purchasing an additional 2,776,920 shares in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its holdings in shares of Cheniere Energy by 91.4% in the 3rd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 3,747,370 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $673,927,000 after acquiring an additional 1,789,919 shares in the last quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP increased its position in shares of Cheniere Energy by 328.2% in the third quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP now owns 894,600 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $160,885,000 after acquiring an additional 685,662 shares during the last quarter. Darlington Partners Capital Management LP raised its holdings in Cheniere Energy by 74.6% during the second quarter. Darlington Partners Capital Management LP now owns 1,514,155 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $264,720,000 after acquiring an additional 647,096 shares in the last quarter. Finally, The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company boosted its position in Cheniere Energy by 8.5% during the second quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 5,270,853 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $921,503,000 after purchasing an additional 413,744 shares during the last quarter. 87.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on LNG shares. Barclays upped their price objective on Cheniere Energy from $202.00 to $253.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. Bank of America assumed coverage on shares of Cheniere Energy in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. They set a “buy” rating and a $215.00 price target on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of Cheniere Energy from $213.00 to $235.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 18th. Scotiabank upped their target price on shares of Cheniere Energy from $242.00 to $247.00 and gave the company a “sector outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on Cheniere Energy from $204.00 to $237.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $231.64.

Cheniere Energy Stock Performance

NYSE:LNG opened at $249.71 on Wednesday. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $220.52 and a 200 day simple moving average of $196.18. The stock has a market cap of $56.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.95 and a beta of 0.99. Cheniere Energy, Inc. has a 1-year low of $152.31 and a 1-year high of $257.65. 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 posted its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The energy company reported $3.93 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.87 by $2.06. Cheniere Energy had a return on equity of 41.44% and a net margin of 22.70%. The company had revenue of $3.76 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.76 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.37 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was down 9.5% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts anticipate that Cheniere Energy, Inc. will post 12.66 earnings per share for the current year.

Cheniere Energy Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, November 18th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 8th were given a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 8th. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.80%. Cheniere Energy’s payout ratio is presently 12.77%.

Cheniere Energy 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.