Investors Buy Large Volume of Put Options on Cheniere Energy (NYSE:LNG)

Cheniere Energy, Inc. (NYSE:LNG) was the target of unusually large options trading activity on Monday. Investors acquired 8,643 put options on the company. This represents an increase of approximately 62% compared to the typical daily volume of 5,346 put options.

Cheniere Energy Stock Up 2.2 %

Cheniere Energy stock opened at $201.63 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $45.10 billion, a PE ratio of 14.17 and a beta of 0.67. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.41, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a current ratio of 1.07. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $221.34 and a 200 day moving average of $212.58. Cheniere Energy has a one year low of $152.88 and a one year high of $257.65.

Cheniere Energy (NYSE:LNG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The energy company reported $4.33 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.74 by $1.59. The firm had revenue of $4.44 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.44 billion. Cheniere Energy had a net margin of 20.71% and a return on equity of 37.19%. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Cheniere Energy will post 11.69 EPS for the current year.

Cheniere Energy Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 21st. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 7th were given a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 7th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.99%. Cheniere Energy’s payout ratio is presently 14.05%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on LNG. Argus began coverage on shares of Cheniere Energy in a research note on Tuesday, March 18th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $255.00 price target on the stock. Scotiabank reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Cheniere Energy in a report on Thursday, March 6th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Cheniere Energy from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 21st. TD Cowen increased their target price on Cheniere Energy from $242.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Finally, Barclays boosted their price target on Cheniere Energy from $202.00 to $253.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Cheniere Energy has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $239.79.

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 on 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 sale, the director now directly owns 33,934 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,448,852.34. The trade was a 20.96 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.29% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Cheniere Energy

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Quantinno Capital Management LP raised its holdings in Cheniere Energy by 26.8% in the 3rd quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 14,800 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $2,662,000 after purchasing an additional 3,124 shares during the period. Stifel Financial Corp raised its stake in shares of Cheniere Energy by 2.3% in the third quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 267,885 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $48,185,000 after buying an additional 6,025 shares during the period. Weiss Asset Management LP purchased a new position in shares of Cheniere Energy during the 3rd quarter valued at about $1,670,000. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Cheniere Energy during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $333,000. Finally, iA Global Asset Management Inc. bought a new stake in Cheniere Energy during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $868,000. Institutional investors own 87.26% of the company’s stock.

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.