LPL Financial LLC Sells 1,223 Shares of Golar LNG Limited $GLNG

LPL Financial LLC cut its stake in Golar LNG Limited (NASDAQ:GLNG) by 1.8% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 65,613 shares of the shipping company’s stock after selling 1,223 shares during the quarter. LPL Financial LLC owned about 0.06% of Golar LNG worth $2,493,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in GLNG. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC grew its holdings in Golar LNG by 358.9% in the first quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 647 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 506 shares during the last quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Golar LNG by 906.4% in the 4th quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 3,462 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $147,000 after purchasing an additional 3,118 shares in the last quarter. Numerai GP LLC purchased a new position in Golar LNG during the 4th quarter worth $245,000. 111 Capital acquired a new position in Golar LNG during the 4th quarter valued at about $248,000. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its position in Golar LNG by 20.2% during the 1st quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 6,561 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $249,000 after buying an additional 1,103 shares in the last quarter. 92.21% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on GLNG shares. DNB Markets upgraded Golar LNG from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $48.00 target price for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. BTIG Research reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Golar LNG in a research report on Wednesday, May 28th. Dnb Nor Markets upgraded Golar LNG from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised Golar LNG from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, three have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Golar LNG has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $51.50.

Golar LNG Trading Up 2.3%

Shares of Golar LNG stock opened at $41.33 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38. Golar LNG Limited has a twelve month low of $29.56 and a twelve month high of $44.36. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.32 billion, a PE ratio of -590.34 and a beta of 0.56. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $41.14 and its 200 day moving average price is $39.33.

Golar LNG (NASDAQ:GLNG) last released its 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 negative net margin of 2.83% and a positive return on equity of 6.25%. The firm had revenue of $75.67 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $79.37 million. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Golar LNG Limited will post 1.39 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Golar LNG Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 2nd. Investors of record on Saturday, January 1st will be issued a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is 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.