Cheniere Energy Q4 Earnings Miss Estimates, Revenues Rise Y/Y

Core Insights - Cheniere Energy, Inc. reported a fourth-quarter 2025 adjusted profit of $2.87 per share, missing the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $3.83, and down from $4.33 in the same quarter last year due to lower total margins per MMBtu of LNG delivered and increased tax provisions [1][10] - Revenues reached $5.5 billion, exceeding the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $5.2 billion, and reflecting a 23% increase from $4.4 billion in the previous year, driven by a 24.5% rise in LNG sales [2][10] - The company declared a quarterly cash dividend of 55 cents per share, unchanged from previous quarters, to be paid to shareholders on February 6, 2026 [2] Financial Performance - Consolidated adjusted EBITDA for the fourth quarter of 2025 was $2 billion, a 30% increase from the prior year, primarily due to higher LNG delivery volumes [3][10] - Distributable cash flow (DCF) generated from LNG was $1.5 billion during the fourth quarter [3] - Costs and expenses were $1.6 billion for the fourth quarter, down 39% from the previous year [9] Strategic Developments - In December 2025, Train 4 of the CCL Stage 3 Project achieved substantial completion, with applications submitted to FERC for increasing LNG capacity by about 5 mtpa [4] - In February 2026, the company sought FERC approval for the CCL Expansion Project and signed a long-term SPA with CPC Corporation, Taiwan, for up to 1.2 mtpa of LNG deliveries from 2026 to 2050 [5] - The board approved an expansion of the share repurchase program to over $10 billion for the 2026-2030 period, including a $9 billion addition to the previous authorization [6] Capital Allocation - The "20/20 Vision" capital allocation strategy was completed ahead of schedule, with over $20 billion invested since its launch in 2022 [7] - In 2025, approximately $1.7 billion and $6.1 billion were allocated under the capital allocation strategy for growth initiatives and shareholder returns [8] - The company repurchased around 4.8 million shares for about $1 billion in the fourth quarter and 12.1 million shares for $2.7 billion over the full year [8] Guidance - Cheniere Energy expects full-year 2026 consolidated adjusted EBITDA to be between $6.7 billion and $7.2 billion, with DCF guidance in the range of $4.35 billion to $4.85 billion [11]