Insider Buying: Navios Maritime Partners (NYSE:NMM) Insider Purchases 1,159 Shares

Navios Maritime Partners LP (NYSE:NMM) insider Angeliki Frangou acquired 1,159 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 23rd. The stock was purchased at an average price of $72.68 per share, with a total value of $84,236.12. Following the completion of the acquisition, the insider owned 4,752,698 shares in the company, valued at $345,426,090.64. The trade was a 0.02% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink.

Angeliki Frangou also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Thursday, June 25th, Angeliki Frangou bought 1,170 shares of Navios Maritime Partners stock. The shares were acquired at an average price of $70.20 per share, for a total transaction of $82,134.00.
• On Wednesday, June 24th, Angeliki Frangou bought 1,148 shares of Navios Maritime Partners stock. The shares were acquired at an average price of $71.94 per share, for a total transaction of $82,587.12.
• On Monday, June 22nd, Angeliki Frangou purchased 1,187 shares of Navios Maritime Partners stock. The stock was acquired at an average price of $71.39 per share, with a total value of $84,739.93.
• On Thursday, June 18th, Angeliki Frangou purchased 1,151 shares of Navios Maritime Partners stock. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $71.10 per share, for a total transaction of $81,836.10.
• On Wednesday, June 17th, Angeliki Frangou purchased 1,126 shares of Navios Maritime Partners stock. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $73.35 per share, for a total transaction of $82,592.10.
• On Tuesday, June 16th, Angeliki Frangou purchased 1,119 shares of Navios Maritime Partners stock. The shares were bought at an average cost of $73.63 per share, for a total transaction of $82,391.97.
• On Monday, June 15th, Angeliki Frangou bought 1,106 shares of Navios Maritime Partners stock. The stock was bought at an average price of $74.73 per share, for a total transaction of $82,651.38.
• On Friday, June 12th, Angeliki Frangou purchased 1,135 shares of Navios Maritime Partners stock. The stock was purchased at an average price of $74.19 per share, for a total transaction of $84,205.65.
• On Thursday, June 11th, Angeliki Frangou purchased 1,155 shares of Navios Maritime Partners stock. The shares were purchased at an average price of $73.34 per share, with a total value of $84,707.70.
• On Wednesday, June 10th, Angeliki Frangou bought 1,154 shares of Navios Maritime Partners stock. The shares were acquired at an average price of $72.18 per share, with a total value of $83,295.72.

Navios Maritime Partners Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:NMM traded down $1.47 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $69.72. The company had a trading volume of 79,672 shares, compared to its average volume of 106,420. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57, a current ratio of 1.45 and a quick ratio of 1.45. The company has a fifty day moving average of $72.01 and a two-hundred day moving average of $64.77. The company has a market cap of $2.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 5.87 and a beta of 1.01. Navios Maritime Partners LP has a 12-month low of $36.62 and a 12-month high of $80.69.

Navios Maritime Partners (NYSE:NMM) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 21st. The shipping company reported $3.35 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.77 by $0.58. Navios Maritime Partners had a return on equity of 10.48% and a net margin of 25.05%.The firm had revenue of $357.01 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $317.80 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.58 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 17.4% on a year-over-year basis.

Navios Maritime Partners Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 14th. Investors of record on Monday, May 11th were issued a $0.06 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 11th. This represents a $0.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.3%. This is an increase from Navios Maritime Partners’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.05. Navios Maritime Partners’s payout ratio is currently 2.02%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Navios Maritime Partners

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its position in shares of Navios Maritime Partners by 64.6% during the 2nd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 17,844 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $672,000 after purchasing an additional 7,006 shares during the last quarter. Jump Financial LLC bought a new stake in Navios Maritime Partners in the second quarter worth about $580,000. Cerity Partners LLC bought a new stake in Navios Maritime Partners in the second quarter worth about $212,000. BNP Paribas Financial Markets boosted its position in shares of Navios Maritime Partners by 25.4% during the second quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 7,706 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $290,000 after buying an additional 1,559 shares during the period. Finally, Ion Asset Management Ltd. boosted its position in shares of Navios Maritime Partners by 2.2% during the second quarter. Ion Asset Management Ltd. now owns 817,963 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $30,821,000 after buying an additional 17,285 shares during the period. 62.74% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have commented on NMM. Weiss Ratings cut Navios Maritime Partners from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Thursday, May 28th. Wall Street Zen raised Navios Maritime Partners from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, March 21st. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on Navios Maritime Partners in a research note on Friday, April 24th. They set a “buy” rating and a $85.00 target price on the stock. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Navios Maritime Partners presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $85.00.

About Navios Maritime Partners

Navios Maritime Partners L.P. (NYSE: NMM) is a dry bulk shipping company that owns and operates a fleet of Capesize, Panamax and Supramax vessels. The partnership charters its vessels under medium- and long-term contracts to a diverse group of charterers, providing seaborne transportation for major bulk cargoes such as iron ore, coal, grain and fertilizers. Through this asset-light model, Navios Maritime Partners seeks to generate stable cash flows while retaining flexibility to capitalize on market opportunities.

Formed in November 2007 and sponsored by Navios Maritime Holdings Inc, the partnership leverages the operating platform and commercial management capabilities of the Navios group.