Golar LNG (NASDAQ:GLNG) Reaches New 52-Week High – Here’s Why

Golar LNG Limited (NASDAQ:GLNG)’s share price hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Friday . The stock traded as high as $39.10 and last traded at $38.56, with a volume of 50110 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $38.84.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

GLNG has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their target price on Golar LNG from $43.00 to $56.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 16th. B. Riley lifted their price objective on Golar LNG from $35.50 to $44.50 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, July 19th. BTIG Research upped their target price on shares of Golar LNG from $36.00 to $45.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 25th. StockNews.com raised shares of Golar LNG to a “sell” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus cut their price objective on shares of Golar LNG from $55.00 to $53.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, August 16th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $49.63.

Golar LNG Stock Performance

The firm has a market cap of $4.03 billion, a PE ratio of 36.99 and a beta of 0.58. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $33.54 and a 200 day moving average price of $29.73. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31, a current ratio of 1.24 and a quick ratio of 1.28.

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

Golar LNG Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 3rd. Investors of record on Monday, August 26th were given a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.59%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 26th. Golar LNG’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 95.24%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Donald Smith & CO. Inc. raised its stake in shares of Golar LNG by 32.0% in the 1st quarter. Donald Smith & CO. Inc. now owns 3,586,994 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $86,303,000 after acquiring an additional 870,233 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. raised its position in Golar LNG by 53.7% in the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,732,655 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $54,319,000 after purchasing an additional 605,499 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Golar LNG by 74.4% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,015,644 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $24,436,000 after purchasing an additional 433,299 shares in the last quarter. Driehaus Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Golar LNG in the second quarter worth about $10,554,000. Finally, Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Golar LNG in the second quarter valued at about $5,805,000. 92.21% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Golar LNG

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.