Traders Buy High Volume of Call Options on Golar LNG (NASDAQ:GLNG)

Golar LNG Limited (NASDAQ:GLNG) was the recipient of unusually large options trading on Friday. Stock traders acquired 10,160 call options on the company. This is an increase of approximately 168% compared to the typical volume of 3,798 call options.

Institutional Trading of Golar LNG

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages recently commented on GLNG. StockNews.com raised Golar LNG to a “sell” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 19th. B. Riley upped 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. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price objective on Golar LNG from $55.00 to $53.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, August 16th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their price objective on Golar LNG from $43.00 to $56.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, August 16th. Finally, 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 report on Tuesday, June 25th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and four have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $49.63.

Golar LNG Trading Up 5.4 %

GLNG opened at $37.50 on Friday. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $33.32 and its two-hundred day moving average is $29.32. The company has a market capitalization of $3.92 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.71 and a beta of 0.58. Golar LNG has a 52 week low of $19.94 and a 52 week high of $37.95. The company has a quick ratio of 1.28, a current ratio of 1.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31.

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

Golar LNG Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed 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 2.67%. Golar LNG’s payout ratio is 95.24%.

Golar LNG Company Profile

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.