Golar LNG (NASDAQ:GLNG) Shares Gap Up – What’s Next?

Golar LNG Limited (NASDAQ:GLNG)’s stock price gapped up before the market opened on Wednesday . The stock had previously closed at $35.04, but opened at $36.21. Golar LNG shares last traded at $36.83, with a volume of 90,093 shares traded.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus upped their target price on shares of Golar LNG from $53.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 24th. StockNews.com raised shares of Golar LNG to a “sell” rating in a research note on Monday, December 9th. Finally, DNB Markets downgraded shares of Golar LNG from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $50.13.

Golar LNG Stock Up 5.3 %

The company has a market cap of $3.85 billion, a PE ratio of 262.63 and a beta of 0.78. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $39.08 and its 200-day moving average is $38.34.

Golar LNG Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 18th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 11th were paid a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.71%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 11th. Golar LNG’s dividend payout ratio is currently 208.33%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Golar LNG

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Barclays PLC raised its stake in shares of Golar LNG by 431.3% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 185,018 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $6,802,000 after acquiring an additional 150,195 shares during the period. De Lisle Partners LLP increased its stake in Golar LNG by 9.1% in the 3rd quarter. De Lisle Partners LLP now owns 249,390 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $9,169,000 after buying an additional 20,890 shares during the period. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund increased its stake in Golar LNG by 467.9% in the 3rd quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund now owns 2,237,000 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $82,232,000 after buying an additional 1,843,100 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its stake in Golar LNG by 37.0% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 218,971 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $8,049,000 after buying an additional 59,188 shares during the period. Finally, Royce & Associates LP increased its stake in Golar LNG by 102.5% in the 3rd quarter. Royce & Associates LP now owns 81,000 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $2,978,000 after buying an additional 41,000 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other 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.