Royal Bank Of Canada Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Cheniere Energy (NYSE:LNG) Stock

Cheniere Energy (NYSE:LNG) had its price objective upped by research analysts at Royal Bank Of Canada from $286.00 to $300.00 in a research report issued on Tuesday,MarketScreener reports. The firm presently has an “outperform” rating on the energy company’s stock. Royal Bank Of Canada’s price target suggests a potential upside of 16.79% from the company’s current price.

LNG has been the subject of several other research reports. Weiss Ratings upgraded Cheniere Energy from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 18th. BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on Cheniere Energy from $265.00 to $306.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, March 23rd. Morgan Stanley upgraded Cheniere Energy from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $236.00 to $313.00 in a research report on Monday, March 23rd. Wolfe Research set a $220.00 target price on Cheniere Energy and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 14th. Finally, TD Cowen raised their target price on Cheniere Energy from $250.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 27th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have given a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Cheniere Energy presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $292.82.

Cheniere Energy Price Performance

Cheniere Energy stock opened at $256.88 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.74, a current ratio of 0.94 and a quick ratio of 0.81. The company has a market capitalization of $53.98 billion, a PE ratio of 10.57 and a beta of 0.14. Cheniere Energy has a one year low of $186.20 and a one year high of $300.89. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $252.30 and a 200 day simple moving average of $223.75.

Cheniere Energy (NYSE:LNG) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 25th. The energy company reported $10.68 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.90 by $6.78. The business had revenue of $5.45 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.48 billion. Cheniere Energy had a return on equity of 32.04% and a net margin of 26.68%.Cheniere Energy’s revenue was up 22.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $4.33 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Cheniere Energy will post 11.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Cheniere Energy announced that its board has authorized a share buyback plan on Thursday, February 26th that allows the company to buyback $10.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the energy company to repurchase up to 21.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are often a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CFO Zach Davis sold 29,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $300.00, for a total transaction of $8,700,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 87,146 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $26,143,800. This trade represents a 24.97% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Sean N. Markowitz sold 22,246 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $290.98, for a total value of $6,473,141.08. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 64,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $18,622,720. This represents a 25.79% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Company insiders own 0.26% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Cheniere Energy

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Salomon & Ludwin LLC bought a new stake in Cheniere Energy during the 3rd quarter worth about $25,000. Strive Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in Cheniere Energy during the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Kohmann Bosshard Financial Services LLC bought a new position in shares of Cheniere Energy in the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd bought a new position in shares of Cheniere Energy in the 3rd quarter valued at about $27,000. Finally, Accordant Advisory Group Inc acquired a new stake in shares of Cheniere Energy during the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,000. Institutional investors own 87.26% of the company’s stock.

Cheniere Energy Company Profile

Cheniere Energy, Inc is a U.S.-based energy company that develops, owns and operates liquefied natural gas (LNG) infrastructure and markets LNG to global customers. The company’s core activities include natural gas liquefaction, long‑term and short‑term LNG sales and marketing, and the associated midstream services required to move gas from production basins to international markets. Cheniere focuses on converting domestic natural gas into LNG for export, providing a bridge between North American supply and overseas demand.

Cheniere’s principal operating assets are large-scale LNG export terminals located on the U.S.