Safe Bulkers (NYSE:SB) Reaches New 52-Week High – Here’s What Happened

Safe Bulkers, Inc (NYSE:SB)’s stock price hit a new 52-week high on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $6.20 and last traded at $6.1750, with a volume of 677398 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $6.15.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

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

Safe Bulkers Price Performance

The firm has a market cap of $631.89 million, a P/E ratio of 20.58 and a beta of 1.13. The company has a fifty day moving average of $5.34 and a 200-day moving average of $4.86. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58, a current ratio of 2.72 and a quick ratio of 2.72.

Safe Bulkers (NYSE:SB) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 18th. The shipping company reported $0.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.14. Safe Bulkers had a net margin of 13.99% and a return on equity of 4.92%. The firm had revenue of $72.57 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $70.00 million. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Safe Bulkers, Inc will post 0.62 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Safe Bulkers Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 18th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 2nd will be given a $0.05 dividend. This represents a $0.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 2nd. Safe Bulkers’s dividend payout ratio is presently 66.67%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Safe Bulkers

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Safe Bulkers by 30.4% in the fourth quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 2,651,114 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $12,778,000 after acquiring an additional 617,711 shares in the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC bought a new position in Safe Bulkers in the 4th quarter valued at $1,571,000. American Century Companies Inc. grew its stake in Safe Bulkers by 16.6% in the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,441,089 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $5,202,000 after purchasing an additional 204,874 shares during the period. Boothbay Fund Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Safe Bulkers during the 3rd quarter valued at $629,000. Finally, UBS Group AG raised its stake in shares of Safe Bulkers by 17.3% during the 4th quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 806,379 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $3,887,000 after purchasing an additional 118,681 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 21.69% of the company’s stock.

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.