Golar LNG (NASDAQ:GLNG) Upgraded at The Goldman Sachs Group

The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded shares of Golar LNG (NASDAQ:GLNG) to a strong-buy rating in a report released on Monday,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other equities analysts also recently weighed in on GLNG. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Golar LNG from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, September 12th. B. Riley restated a “neutral” rating and set a $44.50 target price on shares of Golar LNG in a report on Monday, August 25th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Golar LNG from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday, September 7th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have given a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Golar LNG currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $50.38.

Golar LNG Stock Performance

Shares of GLNG stock opened at $40.12 on Monday. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $41.52 and its 200-day simple moving average is $40.14. The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 1.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63. The firm has a market cap of $4.19 billion, a PE ratio of -573.06 and a beta of 0.22. Golar LNG has a 12 month low of $29.56 and a 12 month high of $45.98.

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

Golar LNG Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 2nd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, August 26th were given a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, August 26th. Golar LNG’s payout ratio is -1,428.57%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Golar LNG

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC boosted its position in shares of Golar LNG by 358.9% in the first quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 647 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 506 shares during the period. Quarry LP bought a new position in shares of Golar LNG in the first quarter worth about $26,000. SVB Wealth LLC bought a new position in shares of Golar LNG in the first quarter worth about $31,000. Signaturefd LLC increased its stake in shares of Golar LNG by 64.6% in the second quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 856 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 336 shares during the period. Finally, Allworth Financial LP increased its stake in shares of Golar LNG by 43.5% in the second quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 990 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $41,000 after buying an additional 300 shares during the period. 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.