Wall Street Zen Downgrades Golar LNG (NASDAQ:GLNG) to Sell

Golar LNG (NASDAQ:GLNG) was downgraded by investment analysts at Wall Street Zen from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note issued to investors on Saturday.

A number of other equities analysts have also recently issued reports on the company. Zacks Research cut Golar LNG from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Friday, November 7th. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Golar LNG in a report on Monday, December 15th. B. Riley reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $44.50 price objective on shares of Golar LNG in a research note on Monday, August 25th. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on shares of Golar LNG in a report on Monday, September 29th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $54.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Citigroup started coverage on shares of Golar LNG in a research report on Friday, October 10th. They set a “buy” rating and a $51.00 target price on the stock. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have issued a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $50.42.

Golar LNG Stock Performance

NASDAQ GLNG opened at $38.09 on Friday. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $38.20 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $40.19. The stock has a market cap of $3.98 billion, a PE ratio of 66.83 and a beta of 0.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61, a quick ratio of 1.32 and a current ratio of 1.32. Golar LNG has a fifty-two week low of $29.56 and a fifty-two week high of $45.98.

Institutional Trading of Golar LNG

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Signaturefd LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Golar LNG by 64.6% during the 2nd quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 856 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 336 shares in the last quarter. Levin Capital Strategies L.P. lifted its position in shares of Golar LNG by 8.0% during the 2nd quarter. Levin Capital Strategies L.P. now owns 496,819 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $20,464,000 after acquiring an additional 36,770 shares during the period. Fortitude Advisory Group L.L.C. lifted its position in shares of Golar LNG by 213.3% during the 2nd quarter. Fortitude Advisory Group L.L.C. now owns 22,756 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $937,000 after acquiring an additional 15,493 shares during the period. CenterBook Partners LP boosted its stake in Golar LNG by 250.5% during the second quarter. CenterBook Partners LP now owns 169,517 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $6,982,000 after acquiring an additional 121,154 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Two Seas Capital LP grew its holdings in Golar LNG by 76.2% in the second quarter. Two Seas Capital LP now owns 909,355 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $37,456,000 after purchasing an additional 393,406 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.21% of the company’s stock.

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.