First Trust Advisors LP Makes New Investment in Excelerate Energy, Inc. $EE

First Trust Advisors LP purchased a new position in shares of Excelerate Energy, Inc. (NYSE:EE) during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm purchased 80,646 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,695,000. First Trust Advisors LP owned 0.07% of Excelerate Energy at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the business. UBS Group AG increased its position in shares of Excelerate Energy by 79.0% during the fourth quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 416,082 shares of the company’s stock worth $11,671,000 after acquiring an additional 183,664 shares in the last quarter. NFJ Investment Group LLC bought a new stake in Excelerate Energy in the 4th quarter valued at $2,590,000. Copeland Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in Excelerate Energy in the 4th quarter valued at $30,658,000. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd boosted its stake in Excelerate Energy by 130.2% in the 1st quarter. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd now owns 62,018 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,073,000 after purchasing an additional 35,078 shares during the period. Finally, CUSHING ASSET MANAGEMENT LP dba NXG INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT acquired a new position in Excelerate Energy in the 1st quarter worth $10,862,000. Institutional investors own 21.79% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

EE has been the topic of several recent research reports. Zacks Research raised Excelerate Energy from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 14th. Stephens reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $45.00 price objective on shares of Excelerate Energy in a report on Thursday, July 9th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $42.00 target price on shares of Excelerate Energy in a research report on Friday, May 8th. Jefferies Financial Group restated a “buy” rating and issued a $48.00 target price on shares of Excelerate Energy in a research note on Friday, July 10th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised Excelerate Energy from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, May 9th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have given a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $40.73.

Excelerate Energy Price Performance

Shares of NYSE EE opened at $34.97 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 2.60, a current ratio of 1.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $36.73 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $36.20. The company has a market cap of $3.98 billion, a PE ratio of 24.12, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.38 and a beta of 1.22. Excelerate Energy, Inc. has a twelve month low of $21.28 and a twelve month high of $43.17.

Excelerate Energy (NYSE:EE) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 5th. The company reported $0.37 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.35 by $0.02. Excelerate Energy had a return on equity of 2.24% and a net margin of 3.23%.The company had revenue of $329.27 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $344.27 million. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.34 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 60.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts predict that Excelerate Energy, Inc. will post 1.52 EPS for the current year.

Excelerate Energy Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 3rd. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, August 19th will be issued a dividend of $0.09 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, August 19th. This represents a $0.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.0%. This is a positive change from Excelerate Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.08. Excelerate Energy’s payout ratio is 26.02%.

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.