BW LPG (NYSE:BWLP) Trading 4.8% Higher – Here’s Why

BW LPG Limited (NYSE:BWLP)’s stock price shot up 4.8% during trading on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $15.87 and last traded at $15.9710. Approximately 157,909 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 62% from the average session volume of 419,669 shares. The stock had previously closed at $15.24.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Clarkson Capital upgraded BW LPG from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 3rd. Dnb Carnegie downgraded BW LPG from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 11th. Kepler Capital Markets lowered BW LPG from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, March 13th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of BW LPG in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold”.

BW LPG Stock Performance

The company has a current ratio of 1.50, a quick ratio of 1.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $15.86 and its 200 day simple moving average is $14.28. The company has a market cap of $2.42 billion and a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.00.

BW LPG (NYSE:BWLP) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, March 3rd. The company reported $0.69 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.60 by $0.09. The business had revenue of $732.40 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $217.18 million. BW LPG had a return on equity of 12.61% and a net margin of 6.76%.

BW LPG Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 23rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 13th will be paid a dividend of $5.4297 per share. This represents a $21.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 135.7%. This is an increase from BW LPG’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 13th. BW LPG’s dividend payout ratio is presently 142.50%.

Institutional Trading of BW LPG

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Royal Bank of Canada boosted its position in shares of BW LPG by 4,137.5% during the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 23,476 shares of the company’s stock valued at $255,000 after acquiring an additional 22,922 shares during the last quarter. Jane Street Group LLC increased its position in BW LPG by 14.0% during the first quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 51,463 shares of the company’s stock worth $558,000 after purchasing an additional 6,331 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its stake in BW LPG by 26.2% during the second quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 8,435 shares of the company’s stock worth $100,000 after purchasing an additional 1,749 shares during the period. Legal & General Group Plc boosted its holdings in BW LPG by 11.2% in the 2nd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 117,180 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,381,000 after purchasing an additional 11,831 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Quantbot Technologies LP acquired a new position in BW LPG in the 2nd quarter valued at about $98,000.

BW LPG Company Profile

BW LPG (NYSE: BWLP) is a pure?play owner and operator of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) carriers. The company’s core business centers on the maritime transportation of LPG, predominantly propane and butane, under both time? and voyage?charter arrangements. Its fleet comprises pressurized and semi?refrigerated vessels designed to meet the specific requirements of LPG producers, traders and end?users around the world.

Headquartered in Singapore, BW LPG serves a global customer base, with commercial offices in key energy hubs including Houston, London, Dubai and Tokyo.