Safe Bulkers (NYSE:SB) Lowered to Buy Rating by Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Safe Bulkers (NYSE:SB) from a strong-buy rating to a buy rating in a research note released on Saturday morning.

Safe Bulkers Stock Performance

Shares of SB opened at $7.83 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.00, a quick ratio of 1.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $6.84 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $6.44. Safe Bulkers has a 12 month low of $3.86 and a 12 month high of $8.05. The stock has a market capitalization of $796.92 million, a P/E ratio of 10.03 and a beta of 0.84.

Safe Bulkers (NYSE:SB) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 28th. The shipping company reported $0.28 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.22 by $0.06. Safe Bulkers had a return on equity of 9.63% and a net margin of 28.29%.The firm had revenue of $87.47 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $77.50 million.

Safe Bulkers Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 26th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 13th will be paid a $0.075 dividend. This represents a $0.30 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.8%. This is a boost from Safe Bulkers’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.06. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 13th. Safe Bulkers’s payout ratio is presently 30.77%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Safe Bulkers

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of SB. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Safe Bulkers by 77.7% in the 1st quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 4,917 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 2,150 shares in the last quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV bought a new position in Safe Bulkers during the fourth quarter worth $48,000. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio bought a new position in Safe Bulkers during the fourth quarter worth $49,000. Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC bought a new position in Safe Bulkers during the third quarter worth $46,000. Finally, Tower Research Capital LLC TRC grew its holdings in Safe Bulkers by 73.4% in the second quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 11,088 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 4,692 shares during the period. 21.69% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Safe Bulkers Company Profile

Safe Bulkers Inc (NYSE: SB) is a dry bulk shipping company engaged in the ocean transport of commodities such as iron ore, coal, grain, and fertilizers. The company operates a modern fleet of vessels, including Panamax, Supramax and Kamsarmax bulk carriers, designed to serve a variety of trade routes and cargo types. Safe Bulkers’ fleet is employed under both time charter and voyage charter arrangements, offering flexibility to respond to market demand and optimize vessel utilization.

Founded in 2008, Safe Bulkers began trading its shares on the New York Stock Exchange in the same year, establishing itself as a publicly listed provider of dry bulk transportation services.