Golar LNG (NASDAQ:GLNG) Upgraded by StockNews.com to “Sell” Rating

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Golar LNG (NASDAQ:GLNG) to a sell rating in a report released on Thursday morning.

Other research analysts have also recently issued research reports about the stock. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price target on shares of Golar LNG from $53.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 24th. DNB Markets cut shares of Golar LNG from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating, four have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $50.13.

Golar LNG Stock Performance

Shares of GLNG stock opened at $37.76 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.94 billion, a P/E ratio of 269.73 and a beta of 0.78. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $38.85 and a 200 day moving average price of $38.41. Golar LNG has a fifty-two week low of $23.45 and a fifty-two week high of $44.36.

Golar LNG Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 18th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 11th were paid a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 11th. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.65%. Golar LNG’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 208.33%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Golar LNG

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Summit Investment Advisors Inc. grew its stake in Golar LNG by 3.3% in the 4th quarter. Summit Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 10,354 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $438,000 after acquiring an additional 328 shares during the last quarter. Mariner LLC grew its stake in Golar LNG by 7.4% in the 4th quarter. Mariner LLC now owns 5,995 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $254,000 after acquiring an additional 414 shares during the last quarter. Kingswood Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in Golar LNG by 5.0% in the 4th quarter. Kingswood Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 10,500 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $444,000 after acquiring an additional 500 shares during the last quarter. Metis Global Partners LLC grew its stake in Golar LNG by 9.8% in the 4th quarter. Metis Global Partners LLC now owns 5,996 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $254,000 after acquiring an additional 534 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio acquired a new stake in Golar LNG in the 3rd quarter valued at about $32,000. 92.21% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.