Genco Shipping & Trading (NYSE:GNK) PT Raised to $23.00

Genco Shipping & Trading (NYSE:GNK) had its target price boosted by Stifel Nicolaus from $22.00 to $23.00 in a research note issued to investors on Friday, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a buy rating on the shipping company’s stock.

A number of other research firms have also commented on GNK. TheStreet upgraded shares of Genco Shipping & Trading from a c rating to a b- rating in a research note on Thursday, February 22nd. BTIG Research reiterated a neutral rating on shares of Genco Shipping & Trading in a research note on Friday, January 5th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered shares of Genco Shipping & Trading from a hold rating to a sell rating in a research note on Thursday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of Hold and a consensus target price of $21.00.

Genco Shipping & Trading Price Performance

NYSE GNK opened at $20.55 on Friday. Genco Shipping & Trading has a 52 week low of $12.39 and a 52 week high of $21.24. The company has a current ratio of 4.46, a quick ratio of 3.70 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21. The stock has a market cap of $878.51 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -66.29 and a beta of 1.18. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $19.93 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $16.94.

Genco Shipping & Trading (NYSE:GNK) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 21st. The shipping company reported $0.43 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.37 by $0.06. Genco Shipping & Trading had a negative net margin of 3.35% and a positive return on equity of 3.10%. The firm had revenue of $115.50 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $72.54 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.67 EPS. Genco Shipping & Trading’s quarterly revenue was down 9.1% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts forecast that Genco Shipping & Trading will post 1.9 EPS for the current year.

Genco Shipping & Trading Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 13th. Investors of record on Wednesday, March 6th were issued a dividend of $0.41 per share. This represents a $1.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 7.98%. This is a boost from Genco Shipping & Trading’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.15. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 5th. Genco Shipping & Trading’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -529.03%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Jesper Christensen sold 12,404 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $19.80, for a total transaction of $245,599.20. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 42,587 shares in the company, valued at $843,222.60. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In related news, insider Jesper Christensen sold 12,404 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $19.80, for a total transaction of $245,599.20. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 42,587 shares in the company, valued at $843,222.60. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CFO Peter George Allen sold 7,036 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $19.80, for a total transaction of $139,312.80. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 35,518 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $703,256.40. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 62,496 shares of company stock worth $1,238,678. Corporate insiders own 2.50% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Genco Shipping & Trading

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in GNK. Raymond James & Associates acquired a new position in Genco Shipping & Trading in the 1st quarter worth approximately $276,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its stake in Genco Shipping & Trading by 17.1% in the 1st quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 173,010 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $4,085,000 after purchasing an additional 25,300 shares during the period. Acadian Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in Genco Shipping & Trading in the 1st quarter worth approximately $26,000. LSV Asset Management boosted its stake in Genco Shipping & Trading by 85.9% in the 1st quarter. LSV Asset Management now owns 100,900 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $2,383,000 after purchasing an additional 46,632 shares during the period. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its stake in Genco Shipping & Trading by 9.4% in the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,916,725 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $45,272,000 after purchasing an additional 164,117 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 58.62% of the company’s stock.

About Genco Shipping & Trading

Genco Shipping & Trading Limited, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the ocean transportation of drybulk cargoes worldwide. The company owns and operates dry bulk vessels to transports iron ore, grains, coal, steel products, and other drybulk cargoes. It charters its vessels primarily to trading houses, including commodities traders; producers; and government-owned entities.