Excelerate Energy (NYSE:EE) Downgraded by Dnb Carnegie to Hold

Excelerate Energy (NYSE:EE) was downgraded by Dnb Carnegie from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a note issued to investors on Thursday,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other equities research analysts also recently commented on the stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $44.00 target price on shares of Excelerate Energy in a research report on Friday, February 6th. Raymond James Financial raised Excelerate Energy from an “outperform” rating to a “strong-buy” rating and set a $36.00 price objective for the company in a report on Monday, January 5th. Wall Street Zen raised Excelerate Energy from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Sunday, January 11th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Excelerate Energy in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Finally, Morgan Stanley set a $30.00 price target on shares of Excelerate Energy and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 6th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have given a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Excelerate Energy currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $35.50.

Excelerate Energy Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE EE opened at $42.10 on Thursday. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $33.29 and its 200-day moving average price is $28.40. Excelerate Energy has a 52-week low of $21.28 and a 52-week high of $43.03. The company has a market cap of $4.80 billion, a PE ratio of 29.24, a PEG ratio of 1.34 and a beta of 1.36. The company has a quick ratio of 2.39, a current ratio of 2.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56.

Excelerate Energy declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback plan on Thursday, December 11th that authorizes the company to buyback $75.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to purchase up to 2.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are often an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Excelerate Energy

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS lifted its stake in shares of Excelerate Energy by 645.2% during the 3rd quarter. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS now owns 69,300 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,746,000 after buying an additional 60,000 shares in the last quarter. Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Excelerate Energy in the third quarter valued at about $1,845,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Excelerate Energy by 153.5% in the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 41,518 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,046,000 after acquiring an additional 25,139 shares during the period. Fortress Investment Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Excelerate Energy in the second quarter worth about $3,130,000. Finally, VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al purchased a new stake in shares of Excelerate Energy during the second quarter worth about $519,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 21.79% of the company’s stock.

About Excelerate Energy

Excelerate Energy (NYSE: EE) is a Houston‐based energy infrastructure company specializing in liquefied natural gas (LNG) solutions. The company develops, owns and operates floating regasification units (FSRUs) that convert shipped LNG into natural gas for delivery into existing pipeline networks. Excelerate Energy’s integrated platform also includes specialized LNG carriers, proprietary regasification technology and on‐shore support facilities, enabling rapid deployment of import terminals without extensive capital construction.

Founded in the early 2000s, Excelerate Energy pioneered the first FSRU in 2007, demonstrating the flexibility and cost advantages of floating LNG import infrastructure.