Verbena Value LP Acquires 175,802 Shares of Golar LNG Limited $GLNG

Key Points

• Verbena Value LP increased its stake in Golar LNG by 17% in the first quarter, buying 175,802 additional shares and bringing its total to 1,210,402 shares. The position now makes up 10.7% of the fund’s portfolio.
• Analysts remain mixed but generally positive on GLNG, with BTIG Research and Goldman Sachs maintaining bullish views while some firms downgraded the stock. Overall, the consensus rating is Moderate Buy with a $58.70 price target.
• Golar LNG recently reported solid financials and pays a dividend, posting $0.82 in quarterly EPS and $137.55 million in revenue, while also issuing a $0.25 quarterly dividend. The stock opened at $51.24, near its 52-week range of $35.02 to $57.79.

Verbena Value LP boosted its holdings in Golar LNG Limited (NASDAQ:GLNG - Free Report) by 17.0% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 1,210,402 shares of the shipping company's stock after purchasing an additional 175,802 shares during the period. Golar LNG comprises 10.7% of Verbena Value LP's portfolio, making the stock its largest position. Verbena Value LP owned 1.19% of Golar LNG worth $65,495,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Danske Bank A S acquired a new stake in shares of Golar LNG during the third quarter worth approximately $56,574,000. Cinctive Capital Management LP acquired a new stake in Golar LNG in the third quarter valued at $4,658,000. Militia Capital Partners LP acquired a new stake in Golar LNG in the third quarter valued at $1,754,000. Long Focus Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Golar LNG by 43.2% in the third quarter. Long Focus Capital Management LLC now owns 637,351 shares of the shipping company's stock valued at $25,755,000 after acquiring an additional 192,351 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Clearline Capital LP boosted its stake in Golar LNG by 39.3% during the 3rd quarter. Clearline Capital LP now owns 391,409 shares of the shipping company's stock valued at $15,817,000 after acquiring an additional 110,335 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.21% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have weighed in on the stock. BTIG Research reissued a "buy" rating and set a $67.00 price objective on shares of Golar LNG in a report on Wednesday, May 20th. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $66.00 price target on shares of Golar LNG and gave the stock a "conviction-buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 7th. Weiss Ratings upgraded Golar LNG from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 23rd. Wall Street Zen lowered Golar LNG from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Saturday, June 27th. Finally, Pareto Securities lowered Golar LNG from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, May 21st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have issued a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $58.70.

Golar LNG Stock Performance

Golar LNG stock opened at $51.24 on Monday. Golar LNG Limited has a 1 year low of $35.02 and a 1 year high of $57.79. The firm's 50-day moving average is $52.01 and its 200-day moving average is $47.87. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.14, a quick ratio of 2.57 and a current ratio of 2.57. The company has a market cap of $5.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.13 and a beta of 0.02.

Golar LNG (NASDAQ:GLNG - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, March 26th. The shipping company reported $0.82 earnings per share for the quarter. Golar LNG had a net margin of 30.10% and a return on equity of 6.86%. The business had revenue of $137.55 million during the quarter. On average, equities analysts expect that Golar LNG Limited will post 0.72 earnings per share for the current year.

Golar LNG Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 1st were issued a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 1st. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.0%. Golar LNG's dividend payout ratio is 72.46%.

About Golar LNG

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.

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