Merit Financial Group LLC Has $312,000 Position in Golar LNG Limited (NASDAQ:GLNG)

Merit Financial Group LLC boosted its stake in shares of Golar LNG Limited (NASDAQ:GLNG) by 13.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 7,363 shares of the shipping company’s stock after purchasing an additional 866 shares during the quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC’s holdings in Golar LNG were worth $312,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in GLNG. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio acquired a new position in shares of Golar LNG during the 3rd quarter worth about $32,000. Blue Trust Inc. increased its position in Golar LNG by 105.1% in the 3rd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,372 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $50,000 after buying an additional 703 shares during the period. Sound Income Strategies LLC acquired a new position in shares of Golar LNG during the third quarter worth approximately $52,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Golar LNG by 206.2% during the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,727 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $54,000 after buying an additional 1,163 shares during the last quarter. Finally, CWM LLC boosted its position in shares of Golar LNG by 830.9% in the third quarter. CWM LLC now owns 1,657 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $61,000 after acquiring an additional 1,479 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.21% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on GLNG shares. StockNews.com raised shares of Golar LNG to a “sell” rating in a research report on Monday, December 9th. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price objective on shares of Golar LNG from $53.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 24th. Finally, Fearnley Fonds cut shares of Golar LNG from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $50.13.

Golar LNG Price Performance

Golar LNG stock opened at $40.14 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 286.73 and a beta of 0.59. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $41.12 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $37.11. Golar LNG Limited has a 52-week low of $19.94 and a 52-week high of $44.36.

Golar LNG Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 2nd. Investors of record on Monday, November 25th were given a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.49%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, November 25th. Golar LNG’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 714.34%.

About Golar LNG

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