Golden Ocean Group (NASDAQ:GOGL) Shares Cross Above Two Hundred Day Moving Average of $10.20

Golden Ocean Group Limited (NASDAQ:GOGL) shares crossed above its 200-day moving average during trading on Thursday . The stock has a 200-day moving average of $10.20 and traded as high as $13.20. Golden Ocean Group shares last traded at $13.04, with a volume of 962,106 shares traded.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently commented on GOGL shares. StockNews.com upgraded Golden Ocean Group from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, March 4th. BTIG Research restated a “neutral” rating on shares of Golden Ocean Group in a research note on Friday, January 5th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group restated a “buy” rating and set a $15.00 price objective on shares of Golden Ocean Group in a research note on Wednesday, February 28th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $12.50.

Golden Ocean Group Stock Down 0.5 %

The company has a current ratio of 1.23, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $12.58 and a 200-day simple moving average of $10.24. The company has a market cap of $2.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.16 and a beta of 1.39.

Golden Ocean Group (NASDAQ:GOGL) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 28th. The shipping company reported $0.32 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.25 by $0.07. Golden Ocean Group had a return on equity of 5.91% and a net margin of 12.68%. The company had revenue of $196.75 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $187.19 million. As a group, analysts predict that Golden Ocean Group Limited will post 1.52 EPS for the current year.

Golden Ocean Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 25th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, March 13th were given a dividend of $0.30 per share. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 9.25%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 12th. This is a positive change from Golden Ocean Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.10. Golden Ocean Group’s payout ratio is 214.29%.

Institutional Trading of Golden Ocean Group

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Harbour Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Golden Ocean Group in the first quarter valued at $691,000. Counterpoint Mutual Funds LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Golden Ocean Group in the first quarter valued at $684,000. Quadrature Capital Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Golden Ocean Group in the fourth quarter valued at $171,000. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Golden Ocean Group by 4.0% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,388,233 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $13,549,000 after buying an additional 52,985 shares during the period. Finally, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Golden Ocean Group by 17.1% in the fourth quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 814,353 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $7,948,000 after buying an additional 119,147 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 22.00% of the company’s stock.

Golden Ocean Group Company Profile

Golden Ocean Group Limited, a shipping company, owns and operates a fleet of dry bulk vessels worldwide. The company's dry bulk vessels comprise Newcastlemax, Capesize, and Panamax vessels operating in the spot and time charter markets. It also transports a range of bulk commodities, including ores, coal, grains, and fertilizers.