Short Interest in Excelerate Energy, Inc. (NYSE:EE) Grows By 15.5%

Excelerate Energy, Inc. (NYSE:EE) was the recipient of a large growth in short interest in the month of February. As of February 27th, there was short interest totaling 930,001 shares, a growth of 15.5% from the February 12th total of 805,066 shares. Approximately 0.8% of the shares of the company are short sold. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 523,071 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 1.8 days. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 523,071 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 1.8 days. Approximately 0.8% of the shares of the company are short sold.

Excelerate Energy Price Performance

Shares of EE traded up $0.73 on Tuesday, hitting $34.59. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 38,298 shares, compared to its average volume of 459,035. The company has a market capitalization of $3.94 billion, a PE ratio of 26.20, a PEG ratio of 1.06 and a beta of 1.34. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54, a current ratio of 2.43 and a quick ratio of 2.43. Excelerate Energy has a fifty-two week low of $21.28 and a fifty-two week high of $43.17. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $36.65 and a 200 day moving average price of $30.02.

Excelerate Energy (NYSE:EE) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 25th. The company reported $0.29 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.30 by ($0.01). The business had revenue of $317.57 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $293.49 million. Excelerate Energy had a net margin of 3.19% and a return on equity of 4.12%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 15.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.40 earnings per share. On average, research analysts anticipate that Excelerate Energy will post 1.16 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Excelerate Energy declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock buyback program on Thursday, December 11th that authorizes the company to buyback $75.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to reacquire up to 2.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are generally an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Excelerate Energy Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 26th. Investors of record on Wednesday, March 11th will be given a dividend of $0.08 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, March 11th. This represents a $0.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.9%. Excelerate Energy’s dividend payout ratio is 24.24%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Excelerate Energy

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS raised its position in Excelerate Energy by 645.2% in the 3rd quarter. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS now owns 69,300 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,746,000 after purchasing an additional 60,000 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Excelerate Energy by 153.5% during the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 41,518 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,046,000 after acquiring an additional 25,139 shares during the last quarter. Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Excelerate Energy during the third quarter valued at $1,845,000. Fortress Investment Group LLC bought a new position in Excelerate Energy in the second quarter valued at about $3,130,000. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its holdings in Excelerate Energy by 37.3% in the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 408,152 shares of the company’s stock valued at $10,281,000 after acquiring an additional 110,970 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 21.79% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on EE shares. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on shares of Excelerate Energy from $30.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 24th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Excelerate Energy in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft restated a “buy” rating and set a $44.00 price target on shares of Excelerate Energy in a research note on Friday, February 6th. Tudor Pickering raised Excelerate Energy from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, November 17th. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered Excelerate Energy from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, February 28th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have assigned a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $39.00.

Excelerate Energy Company Profile

Excelerate Energy (NYSE: EE) is a Houston‐based energy infrastructure company specializing in liquefied natural gas (LNG) solutions. The company develops, owns and operates floating regasification units (FSRUs) that convert shipped LNG into natural gas for delivery into existing pipeline networks. Excelerate Energy’s integrated platform also includes specialized LNG carriers, proprietary regasification technology and on‐shore support facilities, enabling rapid deployment of import terminals without extensive capital construction.

Founded in the early 2000s, Excelerate Energy pioneered the first FSRU in 2007, demonstrating the flexibility and cost advantages of floating LNG import infrastructure.