Golar LNG (NASDAQ:GLNG) Shares Gap Up to $33.46

Golar LNG Limited (NASDAQ:GLNG) shares gapped up prior to trading on Wednesday . The stock had previously closed at $33.46, but opened at $34.13. Golar LNG shares last traded at $34.08, with a volume of 168,362 shares trading hands.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on GLNG shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their target price on shares of Golar LNG from $43.00 to $56.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 16th. BTIG Research upped their price objective on Golar LNG from $36.00 to $45.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 25th. B. Riley raised their price objective on Golar LNG from $35.50 to $44.50 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, July 19th. StockNews.com lowered Golar LNG from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 24th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus cut their price target on Golar LNG from $55.00 to $53.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, August 16th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Golar LNG presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $45.10.

Golar LNG Trading Down 1.2 %

The business has a fifty day moving average price of $33.23 and a 200-day moving average price of $28.66. The company has a quick ratio of 1.28, a current ratio of 1.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31. The company has a market cap of $3.46 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.87 and a beta of 0.58.

Golar LNG (NASDAQ:GLNG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 15th. The shipping company reported $0.42 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.44 by ($0.02). Golar LNG had a return on equity of 9.20% and a net margin of 50.89%. The firm had revenue of $62.98 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $67.38 million. On average, analysts forecast that Golar LNG Limited will post 1.56 earnings per share for the current year.

Golar LNG Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 3rd. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 26th were given a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 26th. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.03%. Golar LNG’s payout ratio is presently 95.24%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in GLNG. Lowe Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Golar LNG during the 2nd quarter worth $45,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in Golar LNG by 206.2% during the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,727 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $54,000 after buying an additional 1,163 shares in the last quarter. Quarry LP increased its holdings in Golar LNG by 1,559.3% in the 2nd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 2,323 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $73,000 after buying an additional 2,183 shares during the period. Banque Cantonale Vaudoise raised its position in shares of Golar LNG by 11.1% in the 2nd quarter. Banque Cantonale Vaudoise now owns 4,185 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $132,000 after buying an additional 417 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Lake Hills Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Golar LNG during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $212,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.21% of the company’s stock.

About Golar LNG

Golar LNG Limited designs, converts, owns, and operates marine infrastructure for the liquefaction of natural gas. The company operates through three segments: FLNG, Corporate and Other, and Shipping. It engages in the regasification, storage, and offloading of liquefied natural gas (LNG); operation of floating liquefaction natural gas (FLNG) vessels or projects; transportation of LNG carriers; and vessel management activities.