Safe Bulkers (NYSE:SB) Hits New 12-Month High – Here’s What Happened

Safe Bulkers, Inc (NYSE:SB)’s stock price reached a new 52-week high on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $6.05 and last traded at $5.9450, with a volume of 243961 shares. The stock had previously closed at $5.85.

Analyst Ratings Changes

SB has been the subject of several analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price objective on Safe Bulkers from $5.00 to $6.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 26th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Safe Bulkers in a research report on Monday, December 29th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $6.00.

Safe Bulkers Price Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $610.40 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.57 and a beta of 1.13. The company has a current ratio of 2.72, a quick ratio of 2.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $5.18 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $4.74.

Safe Bulkers Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 19th. Investors of record on Monday, December 8th were given a dividend of $0.05 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 8th. This represents a $0.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.4%. Safe Bulkers’s dividend payout ratio is currently 55.56%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Safe Bulkers

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in SB. Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC acquired a new position in shares of Safe Bulkers in the third quarter valued at approximately $46,000. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC grew its position in shares of Safe Bulkers by 73.4% in the 2nd quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 11,088 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $40,000 after buying an additional 4,692 shares during the last quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers bought a new position in shares of Safe Bulkers during the second quarter worth about $41,000. State of Alaska Department of Revenue boosted its holdings in Safe Bulkers by 106.8% in the fourth quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 11,599 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $55,000 after acquiring an additional 5,991 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Evergreen Capital Management LLC bought a new position in Safe Bulkers during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $46,000. 21.69% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Safe Bulkers

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.