Flex LNG (NYSE:FLNG) Cut to Sell at Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Flex LNG (NYSE:FLNG) from a hold rating to a sell rating in a research note published on Saturday.

Other equities analysts have also issued reports about the company. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Flex LNG in a research report on Thursday. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “hold” rating and set a $23.00 price objective on shares of Flex LNG in a research note on Wednesday, August 20th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $23.00.

Flex LNG Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:FLNG opened at $26.54 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 2.81, a current ratio of 2.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.23. The stock has a market cap of $1.43 billion, a PE ratio of 14.42 and a beta of 0.49. The company’s fifty day moving average is $25.39 and its 200 day moving average is $24.71. Flex LNG has a 52 week low of $19.46 and a 52 week high of $27.67.

Flex LNG (NYSE:FLNG) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 12th. The company reported $0.43 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.46 by ($0.03). The company had revenue of $85.70 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $83.52 million. Flex LNG had a net margin of 27.84% and a return on equity of 14.41%. Research analysts anticipate that Flex LNG will post 1.9 earnings per share for the current year.

Flex LNG Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 11th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 28th will be given a dividend of $0.75 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 28th. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 11.3%. Flex LNG’s dividend payout ratio is presently 163.93%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Flex LNG

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in FLNG. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. lifted its stake in Flex LNG by 145.3% in the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 1,030,250 shares of the company’s stock worth $23,686,000 after acquiring an additional 610,236 shares during the period. Chelsea Counsel Co. increased its position in Flex LNG by 98.8% during the 2nd quarter. Chelsea Counsel Co. now owns 95,000 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,088,000 after purchasing an additional 47,225 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its holdings in Flex LNG by 22.7% in the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 149,097 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,428,000 after purchasing an additional 27,543 shares in the last quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. lifted its position in shares of Flex LNG by 6,863.4% in the 1st quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 119,143 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,739,000 after purchasing an additional 117,432 shares during the period. Finally, Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC bought a new stake in shares of Flex LNG during the 1st quarter valued at about $2,730,000.

About Flex LNG

FLEX LNG Ltd. engages in the seaborne transportation of liquefied natural gas (LPG) through the ownership and operation of LNG carriers. The company was founded by Philip Eystein Fjeld, Trym Tveitnes and Jostein Ueland in September 2006 and is headquartered in Hamilton, Bermuda.