Golar LNG (NASDAQ:GLNG) Hits New 52-Week High at $25.21

Shares of Golar LNG Limited (NASDAQ:GLNG - Get Free Report) hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $25.21 and last traded at $25.13, with a volume of 1126612 shares. The stock had previously closed at $24.48.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, StockNews.com lowered Golar LNG from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Friday, March 8th.

Golar LNG Stock Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $2.02 billion, a PE ratio of -58.42 and a beta of 0.61. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $22.31 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $22.49.

Golar LNG (NASDAQ:GLNG - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 29th. The shipping company reported $0.90 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.50 by $0.40. Golar LNG had a positive return on equity of 11.67% and a negative net margin of 15.68%. The business had revenue of $78.65 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $76.85 million. Sell-side analysts forecast that Golar LNG Limited will post 1.61 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Golar LNG Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 20th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 12th were issued a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 11th. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.98%. Golar LNG's payout ratio is currently -232.55%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Golar LNG

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Hosking Partners LLP increased its stake in Golar LNG by 20.1% during the third quarter. Hosking Partners LLP now owns 766,339 shares of the shipping company's stock worth $18,591,000 after acquiring an additional 128,416 shares during the last quarter. Rubric Capital Management LP increased its position in Golar LNG by 0.8% during the 3rd quarter. Rubric Capital Management LP now owns 6,506,757 shares of the shipping company's stock worth $157,854,000 after purchasing an additional 50,000 shares in the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. lifted its position in Golar LNG by 59.1% during the third quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 888,096 shares of the shipping company's stock valued at $21,545,000 after buying an additional 330,059 shares in the last quarter. Deutsche Bank AG grew its stake in Golar LNG by 18.9% during the third quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 51,107 shares of the shipping company's stock worth $1,240,000 after buying an additional 8,120 shares during the period. Finally, Stifel Financial Corp increased its position in shares of Golar LNG by 79.2% in the third quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 396,674 shares of the shipping company's stock worth $9,623,000 after acquiring an additional 175,348 shares in the last quarter. 92.21% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Golar LNG Company Profile

Golar LNG Limited designs, owns, and operates marine infrastructure for the liquefaction of natural gas. The company operates through three segments: FLNG, Corporate and Other, and Shipping. It also engages in the regasification, storage, and offloading of liquefied natural gas (LNG); operation of floating liquefaction natural gas (FLNG) vessels; operation of the transportation of LNG carriers; and vessel management.