Golar LNG (NASDAQ:GLNG) Reaches New 12-Month High at $31.81

Golar LNG Limited (NASDAQ:GLNG)’s stock price reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $31.81 and last traded at $31.60, with a volume of 164818 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $31.02.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

GLNG has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. StockNews.com cut Golar LNG from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Thursday, April 25th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their target price on shares of Golar LNG from $28.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 29th. BTIG Research boosted 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. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price target on Golar LNG from $34.00 to $55.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, June 24th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $41.75.

Golar LNG Trading Up 1.5 %

The stock has a market capitalization of $3.29 billion, a PE ratio of 29.54 and a beta of 0.64. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $27.15 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $24.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34, a quick ratio of 1.49 and a current ratio of 1.49.

Golar LNG (NASDAQ:GLNG) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, May 28th. The shipping company reported $0.45 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.44 by $0.01. Golar LNG had a net margin of 38.11% and a return on equity of 10.15%. The firm had revenue of $63.19 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $72.27 million. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Golar LNG Limited will post 1.88 earnings per share for the current year.

Golar LNG Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 10th were issued a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 10th. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.18%. Golar LNG’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 95.24%.

Institutional Trading of Golar LNG

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Rubric Capital Management LP increased its position in Golar LNG by 0.8% during the 3rd quarter. Rubric Capital Management LP now owns 6,506,757 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $157,854,000 after purchasing an additional 50,000 shares during the period. Quadrature Capital Ltd acquired a new stake in Golar LNG in the 3rd quarter valued at $797,000. Seven Eight Capital LP acquired a new position in Golar LNG during the third quarter worth $816,000. American Century Companies Inc. increased its stake in shares of Golar LNG by 59.1% during the third quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 888,096 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $21,545,000 after purchasing an additional 330,059 shares in the last quarter. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC purchased a new stake in Golar LNG during the 4th quarter worth approximately $588,000. Institutional investors own 92.21% of the company’s stock.

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.