Traders Purchase High Volume of DHT Call Options (NYSE:DHT)

DHT Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:DHT) was the recipient of some unusual options trading activity on Thursday. Stock investors bought 23,301 call options on the stock. This is an increase of approximately 161% compared to the average daily volume of 8,911 call options.

DHT Stock Up 1.6%

Shares of DHT stock traded up $0.35 on Thursday, hitting $21.63. 2,664,667 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,752,162. The company has a current ratio of 3.64, a quick ratio of 3.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.48 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.36 and a beta of -0.09. DHT has a fifty-two week low of $10.83 and a fifty-two week high of $23.56. The business has a 50-day moving average of $19.69 and a 200 day moving average of $18.45.

DHT (NYSE:DHT) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The shipping company reported $1.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.18 by $0.04. DHT had a return on equity of 39.40% and a net margin of 65.52%.The business had revenue of $254.96 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $247.17 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.35 EPS. DHT’s revenue for the quarter was up 174.8% compared to the same quarter last year.

DHT Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, August 24th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 17th were given a $1.22 dividend. This is a boost from DHT’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.64. This represents a $4.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 22.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 17th. DHT’s payout ratio is presently 165.99%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Svenn Edvardsen sold 341,007 shares of DHT stock in a transaction on Friday, August 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $20.29, for a total transaction of $6,919,032.03. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 395,705 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,028,854.45. This trade represents a 46.29% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Jon Eglin sold 25,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, September 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $21.00, for a total transaction of $525,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 274,622 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,767,062. This trade represents a 8.34% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last quarter, insiders sold 583,803 shares of company stock valued at $11,843,097. 1.60% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in DHT. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership lifted its position in DHT by 74.1% during the 1st quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 4,315,767 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $78,849,000 after buying an additional 1,836,892 shares in the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE increased its position in shares of DHT by 168.3% in the first quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 1,186,289 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $21,674,000 after acquiring an additional 744,130 shares during the last quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund raised its holdings in DHT by 1,072.1% during the first quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund now owns 1,162,300 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $21,235,000 after acquiring an additional 1,063,134 shares in the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC boosted its position in DHT by 6.0% during the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 773,163 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $14,126,000 after purchasing an additional 43,514 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Acorn Financial Advisory Services Inc. ADV acquired a new position in DHT during the first quarter valued at approximately $13,123,000. Institutional investors own 58.53% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on the company. Weiss Ratings upgraded DHT from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b+)” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 8th. BTIG Research boosted their price objective on DHT from $23.00 to $28.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, September 18th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $21.00.

DHT Company Profile

DHT Holdings, Inc (NYSE: DHT) is a maritime transportation company that owns and operates crude oil tankers. Its fleet is primarily composed of very large crude carriers (VLCCs), which transport crude oil in international seaborne trade.

The company provides tanker transportation services to energy companies, commodity traders and other customers through a combination of voyage charters, time charters and related commercial arrangements. Its vessels serve major global crude oil trade routes linking oil-producing regions with refineries and consuming markets.

DHT was established in 2005 and is headquartered in Hamilton, Bermuda, with operations and commercial activities supported through international offices.