KNOT Offshore Partners LP (NYSE:KNOP) Given Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Shares of KNOT Offshore Partners LP (NYSE:KNOP) have received an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the five research firms that are currently covering the stock, MarketBeat.com reports. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, one has issued a buy recommendation and one has given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month price objective among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $14.00.

A number of brokerages recently commented on KNOP. Fearnley Fonds raised shares of KNOT Offshore Partners from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, April 10th. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of KNOT Offshore Partners from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of KNOT Offshore Partners from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, March 28th. B. Riley Financial raised shares of KNOT Offshore Partners from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $14.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Friday, March 20th. Finally, Zacks Research downgraded shares of KNOT Offshore Partners from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 5th.

KNOT Offshore Partners Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:KNOP opened at $10.79 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $363.23 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.87 and a beta of -0.07. KNOT Offshore Partners has a 52 week low of $6.16 and a 52 week high of $11.55. The company has a quick ratio of 0.25, a current ratio of 0.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.07. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $10.35 and a 200 day moving average of $10.29.

KNOT Offshore Partners Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 14th. Investors of record on Monday, April 27th will be paid a $0.05 dividend. This represents a $0.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.9%. This is a positive change from KNOT Offshore Partners’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.03. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 27th. KNOT Offshore Partners’s payout ratio is presently 29.41%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On KNOT Offshore Partners

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of KNOP. Renaissance Technologies LLC increased its position in shares of KNOT Offshore Partners by 2.7% during the fourth quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 1,227,035 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $12,700,000 after purchasing an additional 32,369 shares in the last quarter. American Beacon Advisors Inc. increased its position in shares of KNOT Offshore Partners by 182.6% during the fourth quarter. American Beacon Advisors Inc. now owns 503,895 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $5,215,000 after purchasing an additional 325,588 shares in the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC increased its position in shares of KNOT Offshore Partners by 56.5% during the fourth quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 145,483 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $1,506,000 after purchasing an additional 52,538 shares in the last quarter. Alpine Global Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of KNOT Offshore Partners during the fourth quarter worth $1,294,000. Finally, Janney Montgomery Scott LLC acquired a new position in shares of KNOT Offshore Partners during the first quarter worth $643,000. Institutional investors own 26.82% of the company’s stock.

KNOT Offshore Partners Company Profile

KNOT Offshore Partners LP is a publicly traded limited partnership formed in 2013 to own and operate shuttle tankers under long?term charters in the offshore oil industry. Listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol KNOP, the partnership specializes in the transportation of crude oil from offshore production facilities to onshore refineries. Its fleet comprises moderne shuttle tankers equipped with dynamic positioning systems, enabling safe transfer operations in harsh weather and sea conditions.

The partnership’s vessels primarily serve fields in the North Sea, Brazil and West Africa, where they operate under multi?year contracts with major energy producers.