Melqart Asset Management UK Ltd Raises Stock Position in Frontline PLC $FRO

Melqart Asset Management UK Ltd boosted its stake in shares of Frontline PLC (NYSE:FRO) by 421.1% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 100,016 shares of the shipping company’s stock after acquiring an additional 80,821 shares during the period. Melqart Asset Management UK Ltd’s holdings in Frontline were worth $2,182,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Frontline by 1.1% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 5,903,785 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $129,966,000 after purchasing an additional 63,432 shares during the period. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. lifted its stake in Frontline by 44.0% in the 3rd quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. now owns 2,247,120 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $51,212,000 after buying an additional 686,212 shares in the last quarter. UBS Group AG lifted its stake in Frontline by 18.2% in the 4th quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 1,411,265 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $30,794,000 after buying an additional 217,760 shares in the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company boosted its holdings in Frontline by 27.3% in the 2nd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 942,698 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $15,477,000 after buying an additional 202,142 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Barclays PLC boosted its holdings in Frontline by 256.9% in the 4th quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 826,343 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $18,031,000 after buying an additional 594,811 shares during the last quarter. 22.70% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have commented on FRO shares. Wall Street Zen raised Frontline from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, April 4th. Pareto Securities lowered Frontline from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $39.46 price target on the stock. in a research note on Monday, May 25th. Evercore cut Frontline from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st. Dnb Carnegie cut Frontline from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, March 2nd. Finally, Danske downgraded Frontline to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 26th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Frontline currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $39.12.

Frontline Stock Down 0.0%

Shares of NYSE FRO opened at $39.41 on Wednesday. Frontline PLC has a 12-month low of $16.25 and a 12-month high of $40.17. The stock has a market cap of $8.77 billion, a PE ratio of 9.71 and a beta of 0.02. The company has a current ratio of 2.03, a quick ratio of 2.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.83. The company has a 50-day moving average of $36.42 and a 200 day moving average of $31.23.

Frontline (NYSE:FRO) last released its earnings results on Friday, May 22nd. The shipping company reported $1.55 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.58 by ($0.03). The business had revenue of $714.24 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $579.59 million. Frontline had a return on equity of 27.80% and a net margin of 36.70%.The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 66.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.18 earnings per share.

Frontline Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 23rd. Investors of record on Friday, June 12th will be given a dividend of $1.55 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 12th. This is a positive change from Frontline’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.03. This represents a $6.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 15.7%. Frontline’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 152.71%.

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.