Golar LNG (NASDAQ:GLNG) Shares Gap Up After Dividend Announcement

Shares of Golar LNG Limited (NASDAQ:GLNG) gapped up before the market opened on Thursday after the company announced a dividend. The stock had previously closed at $51.07, but opened at $55.27. Golar LNG shares last traded at $52.7060, with a volume of 414,441 shares.

The newly announced dividend which will be paid on Wednesday, September 2nd. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 24th will be given a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 24th. Golar LNG’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 72.46%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently weighed in on GLNG. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $66.00 target price on Golar LNG and gave the stock a “conviction-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 7th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a “buy” rating and set a $65.00 price objective on shares of Golar LNG in a report on Thursday, May 21st. Pareto Securities downgraded shares of Golar LNG from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 21st. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Golar LNG from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Saturday, June 27th. Finally, BTIG Research increased their target price on shares of Golar LNG from $67.00 to $70.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have given a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $59.30.

Golar LNG Stock Performance

The company has a market cap of $5.32 billion, a PE ratio of 32.81 and a beta of 0.05. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $50.11 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $49.80. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.14, a current ratio of 2.57 and a quick ratio of 2.57.

Golar LNG (NASDAQ:GLNG) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, March 26th. The shipping company reported $0.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. The business had revenue of $137.55 million for the quarter. Golar LNG had a net margin of 31.27% and a return on equity of 8.92%. Equities analysts predict that Golar LNG Limited will post 0.72 EPS for the current year.

More Golar LNG News

Here are the key news stories impacting Golar LNG this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q2 earnings and EBITDA beat expectations: Golar reported adjusted EBITDA of $127.4 million, up 159% year over year, while net income attributable to shareholders rose 145% to $38.3 million. Earnings of $0.68 per share exceeded the $0.55 consensus estimate and more than doubled from $0.26 a year earlier. Golar LNG Q2 Earnings and Revenues Beat Estimates
• Positive Sentiment: Fourth FLNG project approved: Golar signed a roughly $2.45 billion engineering, procurement and construction contract for a 3.5 million-ton-per-year FLNG unit. The vessel is expected to be delivered by the end of 2029 and could expand the company’s long-term LNG production capacity, with management citing favorable delivery timing and improved payment terms. Golar LNG orders 4th FLNG unit for 2029 delivery
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst becomes more bullish: BTIG Research raised its price target from $67 to $70 and reaffirmed a “buy” rating, implying substantial upside from the current trading level.
• Positive Sentiment: Dividend maintained: Golar declared a quarterly cash dividend of $0.25 per share, payable September 2 to shareholders of record on August 24. The annualized yield is approximately 2%.
• Neutral Sentiment: Revenue growth was strong but slightly mixed against estimates: Quarterly operating revenue increased 72% year over year to $130.5 million. However, one report placed revenue modestly below the $131.3 million analyst consensus, making the earnings beat the more important positive catalyst.
• Negative Sentiment: Significant capital commitment: The new FLNG project will require approximately $2.45 billion, and Golar’s share of contractual debt was $2.68 billion, up 31% year over year. Investors may therefore monitor financing, construction execution and leverage risks as the expansion advances.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of GLNG. Rubric Capital Management LP boosted its stake in shares of Golar LNG by 2.3% during the second quarter. Rubric Capital Management LP now owns 9,178,978 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $378,082,000 after buying an additional 203,829 shares during the period. PointState Capital LP raised its stake in Golar LNG by 19.3% during the 4th quarter. PointState Capital LP now owns 3,932,104 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $146,314,000 after acquiring an additional 637,081 shares during the last quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in Golar LNG by 253.7% during the 4th quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,306,379 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $85,821,000 after acquiring an additional 1,654,353 shares during the last quarter. Morgan Stanley lifted its position in Golar LNG by 14.0% during the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 2,110,671 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $78,538,000 after acquiring an additional 259,915 shares during the period. Finally, State Street Corp lifted its position in Golar LNG by 1.4% during the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,914,741 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $78,868,000 after acquiring an additional 26,838 shares during the period. 92.21% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.