Oxbow Advisors LLC Lowers Holdings in Frontline PLC $FRO

Oxbow Advisors LLC trimmed its stake in shares of Frontline PLC (NYSE:FRO) by 46.4% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 209,166 shares of the shipping company’s stock after selling 181,293 shares during the period. Oxbow Advisors LLC owned about 0.09% of Frontline worth $4,767,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Marshall Wace LLP boosted its position in Frontline by 155.1% in the 2nd quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 1,692,537 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $27,775,000 after purchasing an additional 1,029,034 shares in the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC increased its stake in shares of Frontline by 274.3% in the 2nd quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 877,529 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $14,400,000 after purchasing an additional 643,100 shares in the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC acquired a new position in Frontline in the 1st quarter worth about $7,587,000. Pinpoint Asset Management Singapore Pte. Ltd. purchased a new position in Frontline during the second quarter worth approximately $5,862,000. Finally, Balyasny Asset Management L.P. grew its holdings in Frontline by 28.3% in the second quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. now owns 1,560,908 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $25,614,000 after purchasing an additional 344,706 shares during the period. 22.70% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on FRO shares. Clarkson Capital raised Frontline from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, January 12th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price target on shares of Frontline from $28.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, November 21st. Evercore ISI increased their price objective on shares of Frontline from $22.00 to $26.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 28th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Frontline in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Frontline from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, September 26th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Frontline currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $24.62.

Frontline Price Performance

FRO traded up $0.79 on Friday, hitting $26.10. 3,185,915 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,963,799. Frontline PLC has a fifty-two week low of $12.40 and a fifty-two week high of $26.80. The stock has a market cap of $5.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.63 and a beta of 0.08. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $23.61 and a 200-day moving average price of $22.26. The company has a current ratio of 1.37, a quick ratio of 1.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.27.

Frontline (NYSE:FRO) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, November 21st. The shipping company reported $0.19 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.23 by ($0.04). The business had revenue of $257.04 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $265.23 million. Frontline had a return on equity of 8.89% and a net margin of 12.23%.During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.34 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Frontline PLC will post 1.78 earnings per share for the current year.

Frontline Cuts Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 19th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 12th were given a $0.19 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, December 12th. This represents a $0.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.9%. Frontline’s dividend payout ratio is 77.55%.

About Frontline

Frontline Ltd. (NYSE:FRO) is a leading global shipping company specializing in the seaborne transportation of crude oil and petroleum products. The company’s core business activities encompass the ownership and operation of very large crude carriers (VLCCs), Suezmax tankers and Aframax vessels. Through long-term charters, spot market operations and time charters, Frontline provides flexible shipping solutions that cater to a diverse set of energy producers, refiners and trading houses worldwide.

Frontline’s fleet is geared toward high-capacity, ocean-going tankers capable of carrying large volumes of crude oil over intercontinental distances.