HITE Hedge Asset Management LLC Takes $6.59 Million Position in Golar LNG Limited $GLNG

HITE Hedge Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in Golar LNG Limited (NASDAQ:GLNG) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 176,977 shares of the shipping company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,585,000. HITE Hedge Asset Management LLC owned 0.17% of Golar LNG as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in GLNG. Amundi lifted its stake in shares of Golar LNG by 29.6% in the 1st quarter. Amundi now owns 19,586 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $744,000 after purchasing an additional 4,468 shares during the period. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. lifted its stake in shares of Golar LNG by 4.6% in the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 58,915 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $2,238,000 after purchasing an additional 2,572 shares during the period. Legal & General Group Plc lifted its stake in shares of Golar LNG by 2.8% in the 2nd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 17,100 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $704,000 after purchasing an additional 459 shares during the period. Prudential Financial Inc. raised its stake in Golar LNG by 68.4% during the 2nd quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. now owns 11,689 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $481,000 after buying an additional 4,746 shares during the period. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake in Golar LNG by 94.0% during the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,356 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $56,000 after buying an additional 657 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.21% of the company’s stock.

Golar LNG Stock Up 1.2%

Shares of Golar LNG stock opened at $51.17 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.14, a current ratio of 2.57 and a quick ratio of 2.57. The company has a market capitalization of $5.18 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.08 and a beta of 0.02. The business has a 50-day moving average of $53.38 and a two-hundred day moving average of $46.01. Golar LNG Limited has a 1 year low of $35.02 and a 1 year high of $57.79.

Golar LNG (NASDAQ:GLNG) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, March 26th. The shipping company reported $0.82 earnings per share for the quarter. The company had revenue of $137.55 million during the quarter. Golar LNG had a return on equity of 6.86% and a net margin of 30.10%. As a group, equities analysts predict that Golar LNG Limited will post 0.72 EPS for the current year.

Golar LNG Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 1st were given a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 1st. Golar LNG’s dividend payout ratio is currently 72.46%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the company. Weiss Ratings raised Golar LNG from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research note on Monday, June 1st. BTIG Research restated a “buy” rating and issued a $67.00 price target on shares of Golar LNG in a report on Wednesday, May 20th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft restated a “buy” rating and issued a $65.00 price target on shares of Golar LNG in a report on Thursday, May 21st. Wall Street Zen upgraded Golar LNG from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, May 23rd. Finally, Pareto Securities downgraded Golar LNG from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, May 21st. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $56.70.

Golar LNG Company Profile

Golar LNG Ltd. is a leading owner and operator of liquefied natural gas (LNG) carriers and floating infrastructure. The company specializes in the transportation of LNG on long-term and spot charters for major energy firms around the world. In addition to shipping, Golar LNG has broadened its services to include project development and the conversion of existing carriers into Floating Liquefied Natural Gas (FLNG) and Floating Storage and Regasification Unit (FSRU) vessels.

Since pioneering the first purpose-built FLNG conversion project, Golar LNG has been at the forefront of offshore gas monetization.