LNG shipping stocks: A hard week

Last week, the liquefied natural gas (LNG) shipping sector faced significant challenges, as stocks across the industry experienced sharp declines. The UP World LNG Shipping Index, which tracks listed LNG shipping companies, dropped by 4.88%, while the S&P 500 saw a similar 4.25% decrease.
Despite these challenges, the sector remains resilient due to long-term charters and upcoming winter demand, though nearly all companies saw stock price declines.
UPI & SPX Last week, UPI, which tracks listed LNG shipping companies, lost 8.49 points, or 4.88%, closing at 165.34 points. The S&P 500 index lost 4.25%. The chart below shows both indices with weekly data.
Week 37-2024: Chart of the UP World LNG Shipping Index with S&P 500 (Source: UP-Indices)
Broader view
Last week was challenging for investors as there were significant market declines, and LNG shippers were not exempt from this trend. Two negative pieces of news were released last week: Rates of LNG carriers have not increased yet, and warm weather in Asia has come to an end. The issue of rates has been ongoing since the end of winter.
During market declines, a lot of negative news and details are published. However, UPI is still on an uptrend, and LNG shippers are in a better position than the overall market, primarily due to winter expectations and term charters.
Constituents Last week, almost all stocks went down, with most dropping around six or five per cent. These declines were not limited to a specific region; all markets experienced decreases. Awilco LNG (OSE: ALNG) suffered the biggest loss, dropping by 11.4 per cent after going ex-dividend, while New Fortress Energy (NASDAQ: NFE) declined by 10.2 per cent. ALNG’s performance remained steady, but NFE continued on a downward trend.
NYK Line (TSE: 9101) experienced a nine per cent loss, while Korea Line Corporation (KSE: 005880) saw an 8.1 per cent decrease. Despite a significant decline, KLC remains in a wide uptrend due to its extensive range and the fact that a lower low has not been formed yet. Tsakos Energy Navigation (NYSE: TEN) declined by 7.1%.
A broad group of companies experienced a six per cent decline: MOL (TSE: 9104) and “K” Line (TSE: 9107) saw losses of 6.6 and 6 per cent, respectively. Additionally, BP (NYSE: BP), Chevron (NYSE: CVX), and Shell (NYSE: SHEL) dropped by 6.1, 6.3, and 6.6 per cent, while Golar LNG (NASDAQ: GLNG) experienced a 6.4 per cent decrease. All three gas and oil drillers are currently in a downtrend.
MISC (KLSE: 3816) experienced a 5.6 per cent loss, and Flex LNG (NYSE/OSE: FLNG) also dropped by 5.6 per cent. The situations of these two companies differ: MISC is currently in a downtrend, while FLNG is still holding support at $25 and trading sideways.Cool Company (NYSE/OSE: CLCO) and Capital Clean Energy Carriers (formerly Capital Product Partners LP) (NASDAQ: CCEC) experienced relatively small losses of 3.1% and 2.6%, respectively.
Nakilat (QSE: QGTS), Dynagas LNG Partners (NYSE: DLNG), and Excelerate Energy (NASDAQ: EE) also had minimal losses of 1.3%, 1.3%, and 1.7%, respectively.
And the gainer? Exmar NV (BSE: EXM) was the only company that saw gains last week, with a rise of 2.4%, despite its planned delisting situation.
Established in 2020, the UP World LNG Shipping Index is a rules-based stock index family designed to measure the performance of worldwide publicly traded companies involved in the maritime transport of liquefied natural gas (LNG). This unique index covers 19 companies and partnerships worldwide, representing over 65% of the world’s LNG carrier fleet in 2020. The UP Index offers premium services with freemium and trial access to charts. With Freemium, users can access the basic UPI vs S&P 500 chart after email registration. The trial includes full access for fourteen days.
Source: By Tomas Novotny, UP-Indices.com