Golar LNG (GLNG) shares rallied 5.6% in the last trading session to close at $32.42. This move can be attributable to notable volume with a higher number of shares being traded than in a typical session. This compares to the stock's 6.1% loss over the past four weeks.

GLNG's transition to a pure FLNG company through strategic asset sales is a tailwind and positions it for higher-margin growth through  20-year FLNG contracts. The resolution of the dispute between BP and GLNG over initial payments for the floating liquefied natural gas vessel Gimi is also a positive. GLNG's price is moving up (up 3.5% in the past month) mainly owing to these tailwinds.

This operator of carriers for natural gas shipping is expected to post quarterly earnings of $0.31 per share in its upcoming report, which represents a year-over-year change of -31.1%. Revenues are expected to be $64.4 million, up 1.9% from the year-ago quarter.

Earnings and revenue growth expectations certainly give a good sense of the potential strength in a stock, but empirical research shows that trends in earnings estimate revisions are strongly correlated with near-term stock price movements.

For Golar LNG, the consensus EPS estimate for the quarter has remained unchanged over the last 30 days. And a stock's price usually doesn't keep moving higher in the absence of any trend in earnings estimate revisions. So, make sure to keep an eye on GLNG going forward to see if this recent jump can turn into more strength down the road.

The stock currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). You can see the complete list of today's Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) stocks here >>>>

Golar LNG is part of the Zacks Oil and Gas - Integrated - International industry. Vista Oil & Gas, S.A.B. de C.V. Sponsored ADR (VIST), another stock in the same industry, closed the last trading session 4.4% lower at $37.03. VIST has returned -15.3% in the past month.

For Vista Oil & Gas , the consensus EPS estimate for the upcoming report has remained unchanged over the past month at $1.04. This represents a change of +112.2% from what the company reported a year ago. Vista Oil & Gas currently has a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold).

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This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).

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