Navigator (NYSE:NVGS) Trading Down 4.4% – What’s Next?

Navigator Holdings Ltd. (NYSE:NVGS)’s share price fell 4.4% on Thursday . The stock traded as low as $20.00 and last traded at $19.86. Approximately 43,381 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 90% from the average session volume of 415,249 shares. The stock had previously closed at $20.78.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Navigator from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday, March 15th. Citigroup increased their target price on shares of Navigator from $24.00 to $27.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 12th. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Navigator from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 20th. Finally, Zacks Research raised shares of Navigator from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 23rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and five have given a Buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $23.33.

Navigator Stock Performance

The company has a market cap of $1.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.68, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.85 and a beta of 0.46. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59, a current ratio of 1.16 and a quick ratio of 1.10. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $21.93 and a 200 day moving average price of $20.10.

Navigator (NYSE:NVGS) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 6th. The shipping company reported $0.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.34 by $0.16. Navigator had a return on equity of 7.01% and a net margin of 18.84%.The business had revenue of $140.62 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $139.35 million. As a group, analysts anticipate that Navigator Holdings Ltd. will post 1.98 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Navigator Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 10th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 20th were issued a $0.07 dividend. This represents a $0.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.4%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, May 20th. Navigator’s dividend payout ratio is 17.18%.

Insider Activity at Navigator

In related news, insider Oeyvind Lindeman sold 6,259 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $21.70, for a total value of $135,820.30. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, COO Michael Schroder sold 25,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $23.63, for a total transaction of $590,750.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 5,000 shares in the company, valued at $118,150. This represents a 83.33% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 0.40% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Navigator

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Navigator by 1,124.1% in the fourth quarter. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. now owns 1,677 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 1,540 shares in the last quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System bought a new position in shares of Navigator during the second quarter worth about $29,000. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. raised its position in Navigator by 2,794.4% in the 3rd quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 2,055 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 1,984 shares during the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc acquired a new stake in Navigator in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $42,000. Finally, Russell Investments Group Ltd. bought a new stake in Navigator in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $43,000. Institutional investors own 18.95% of the company’s stock.

Navigator Company Profile

Navigator Holdings Ltd. is a global shipping company specializing in the seaborne transportation of liquefied gases. The company’s fleet is purpose-built to carry a range of petrochemical gases, including liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), ethylene, propylene and ammonia. Navigator’s vessels are designed to meet the stringent safety and environmental standards required for handling pressurized and refrigerated gases, offering flexible capacity to customers across the energy and chemical sectors.

Navigator operates one of the largest and most modern fleets of gas carriers in the industry, with vessels ranging from fully pressurized gas carriers to specialized very large ethane carriers (VLECs).