Golar LNG Limited (NASDAQ:GLNG) Receives Average Recommendation of “Buy” from Analysts

Shares of Golar LNG Limited (NASDAQ:GLNG) have been assigned an average recommendation of “Buy” from the ten ratings firms that are covering the company, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, four have assigned a buy recommendation and three have given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month price objective among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $50.50.

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. B. Riley restated a “neutral” rating and set a $44.50 price target on shares of Golar LNG in a report on Monday, August 25th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Golar LNG from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Sunday, September 7th. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on Golar LNG in a research note on Monday, September 29th. They set a “buy” rating and a $54.00 price target on the stock. Citigroup started coverage on Golar LNG in a research note on Friday. They set a “buy” rating and a $51.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Golar LNG in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th.

Institutional Trading of Golar LNG

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC lifted its position in Golar LNG by 358.9% during the 1st quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 647 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 506 shares during the period. Quarry LP acquired a new stake in Golar LNG during the 1st quarter worth approximately $26,000. SVB Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in Golar LNG during the 1st quarter worth approximately $31,000. Signaturefd LLC lifted its position in Golar LNG by 64.6% during the 2nd quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 856 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $35,000 after acquiring an additional 336 shares during the period. Finally, Allworth Financial LP lifted its position in Golar LNG by 43.5% during the 2nd quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 990 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $41,000 after acquiring an additional 300 shares during the period. 92.21% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Golar LNG Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ GLNG opened at $38.99 on Monday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $41.26 and its two-hundred day moving average is $40.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63, a current ratio of 1.47 and a quick ratio of 0.85. Golar LNG has a 1-year low of $29.56 and a 1-year high of $45.98. The company has a market cap of $4.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -556.92 and a beta of 0.22.

Golar LNG (NASDAQ:GLNG) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 14th. The shipping company reported $0.26 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.29 by ($0.03). Golar LNG had a positive return on equity of 6.36% and a negative net margin of 2.83%.The company had revenue of $75.67 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $79.37 million. Analysts forecast that Golar LNG will post 1.39 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Golar LNG Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 2nd. Investors of record on Tuesday, August 26th were paid a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.6%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, August 26th. Golar LNG’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently -1,428.57%.

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.