Lazard Asset Management LLC Raises Stock Position in Excelerate Energy, Inc. (NYSE:EE)

Lazard Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Excelerate Energy, Inc. (NYSE:EE - Free Report) by 489.7% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 23,572 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 19,575 shares during the period. Lazard Asset Management LLC's holdings in Excelerate Energy were worth $712,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in EE. TimesSquare Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Excelerate Energy during the fourth quarter valued at $13,854,000. Wellington Management Group LLP purchased a new stake in Excelerate Energy during the 4th quarter valued at about $5,921,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Excelerate Energy in the fourth quarter valued at about $5,510,000. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Excelerate Energy by 94.3% in the fourth quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 350,128 shares of the company's stock worth $10,591,000 after purchasing an additional 169,924 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC purchased a new stake in Excelerate Energy in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $2,872,000. 21.79% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on EE. Stephens reiterated an "overweight" rating and issued a $36.00 price objective on shares of Excelerate Energy in a research note on Monday, March 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company reissued an "underweight" rating on shares of Excelerate Energy in a report on Friday, March 28th. Wall Street Zen lowered Excelerate Energy from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday. Barclays boosted their price target on Excelerate Energy from $31.00 to $32.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, February 28th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an "underweight" rating and set a $29.00 price objective (up previously from $25.00) on shares of Excelerate Energy in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Excelerate Energy has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $31.17.

Excelerate Energy Price Performance

EE stock traded up $0.48 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $28.96. 272,250 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 288,443. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34, a current ratio of 4.12 and a quick ratio of 4.12. Excelerate Energy, Inc. has a 12-month low of $16.70 and a 12-month high of $32.99. The stock's 50 day moving average is $27.37 and its 200 day moving average is $29.06. The company has a market cap of $3.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.25, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.82 and a beta of 1.39.

Excelerate Energy (NYSE:EE - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The company reported $0.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.39 by $0.10. Excelerate Energy had a net margin of 3.14% and a return on equity of 1.39%. The business had revenue of $315.09 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $207.87 million. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 14.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts expect that Excelerate Energy, Inc. will post 1.16 EPS for the current year.

Excelerate Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 5th. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 21st will be paid a $0.06 dividend. This represents a $0.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.83%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, May 21st. Excelerate Energy's dividend payout ratio is currently 16.33%.

About Excelerate Energy

Excelerate Energy, Inc provides flexible liquefied natural gas (LNG) solutions worldwide. The company offers regasification services, including floating storage and regasification units (FSRUs), infrastructure development, and LNG and natural gas supply, procurement, and distribution services; LNG terminal services; and natural gas supply to-power projects.