Navigator Holdings Ltd. (NYSE:NVGS) Receives $21.50 Average Target Price from Analysts

Shares of Navigator Holdings Ltd. (NYSE:NVGS) have been given a consensus recommendation of “Buy” by the five ratings firms that are covering the company, MarketBeat reports. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy recommendation and one has given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month price objective among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $21.50.

A number of equities analysts have commented on the stock. Pareto Securities assumed coverage on shares of Navigator in a research report on Tuesday, December 9th. They set a “buy” rating for the company. Zacks Research raised shares of Navigator from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 25th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft assumed coverage on shares of Navigator in a research report on Thursday, September 25th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $24.00 price objective for the company. Wall Street Zen cut Navigator from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, December 27th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “buy” rating and set a $19.00 target price on shares of Navigator in a research note on Wednesday, November 5th.

Navigator Stock Up 0.1%

Navigator stock opened at $17.37 on Friday. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $17.38 and a two-hundred day moving average of $16.28. Navigator has a twelve month low of $10.55 and a twelve month high of $18.29. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.50, a PEG ratio of 0.37 and a beta of 0.42. The company has a current ratio of 1.18, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60.

Navigator (NYSE:NVGS) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, November 4th. The shipping company reported $0.36 EPS for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.36. Navigator had a return on equity of 6.83% and a net margin of 17.85%.The business had revenue of $153.09 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $133.84 million. As a group, research analysts expect that Navigator will post 1.25 earnings per share for the current year.

Navigator Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 16th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, November 25th were given a $0.07 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, November 25th. This is a positive change from Navigator’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.05. This represents a $0.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.6%. Navigator’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 18.54%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Navigator

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Focus Partners Wealth increased its holdings in shares of Navigator by 3.7% in the 3rd quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 37,394 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $579,000 after purchasing an additional 1,334 shares in the last quarter. Aquatic Capital Management LLC grew its position in Navigator by 8.0% during the third quarter. Aquatic Capital Management LLC now owns 18,194 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $282,000 after buying an additional 1,353 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. increased its holdings in Navigator by 1.4% in the second quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 132,508 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $1,875,000 after buying an additional 1,892 shares in the last quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. increased its holdings in Navigator by 2,794.4% in the third quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 2,055 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 1,984 shares in the last quarter. Finally, California State Teachers Retirement System acquired a new stake in shares of Navigator during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $29,000. 18.95% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Navigator

Navigator Holdings Ltd. is a global shipping company specializing in the seaborne transportation of liquefied gases. The company’s fleet is purpose-built to carry a range of petrochemical gases, including liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), ethylene, propylene and ammonia. Navigator’s vessels are designed to meet the stringent safety and environmental standards required for handling pressurized and refrigerated gases, offering flexible capacity to customers across the energy and chemical sectors.

Navigator operates one of the largest and most modern fleets of gas carriers in the industry, with vessels ranging from fully pressurized gas carriers to specialized very large ethane carriers (VLECs).