Golar LNG Limited (NASDAQ:GLNG) Receives $50.13 Consensus Target Price from Analysts

Golar LNG Limited (NASDAQ:GLNG - Get Free Report) has been assigned an average rating of "Moderate Buy" from the five research firms that are covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 1 year price target among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $50.13.

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on GLNG shares. Fearnley Fonds downgraded shares of Golar LNG from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. StockNews.com raised Golar LNG to a "sell" rating in a report on Monday, December 9th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus upped their price objective on Golar LNG from $53.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, December 24th.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund raised its position in shares of Golar LNG by 467.9% during 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 purchasing an additional 1,843,100 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp raised its holdings in shares of Golar LNG by 5.2% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,920,590 shares of the shipping company's stock worth $70,601,000 after acquiring an additional 94,336 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. lifted its position in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 605,499 shares in the last quarter. Clearline Capital LP acquired a new stake in shares of Golar LNG during the third quarter valued at $36,865,000. Finally, Brookfield Corp ON increased its position in Golar LNG by 180.8% during the 3rd quarter. Brookfield Corp ON now owns 849,959 shares of the shipping company's stock worth $31,244,000 after purchasing an additional 547,253 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.21% of the company's stock.

Golar LNG Stock Performance

Golar LNG stock traded down $0.34 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $43.50. 2,184,371 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,440,794. The stock has a market cap of $4.54 billion, a P/E ratio of 310.74 and a beta of 0.61. The firm's 50 day moving average is $39.60 and its 200 day moving average is $35.96. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41, a quick ratio of 1.28 and a current ratio of 1.55. Golar LNG has a 52-week low of $19.94 and a 52-week high of $44.36.

Golar LNG Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 2nd. Investors of record on Monday, November 25th were issued a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.30%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, November 25th. Golar LNG's dividend payout ratio is currently 714.34%.

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.