KNOT Offshore Partners LP (NYSE:KNOP) Receives Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Brokerages

Shares of KNOT Offshore Partners LP (NYSE:KNOP) have received an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the five research firms that are covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. The average 12 month price target among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $14.00.

Several analysts recently issued reports on KNOP shares. Zacks Research raised KNOT Offshore Partners from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 4th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of KNOT Offshore Partners in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered shares of KNOT Offshore Partners from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Saturday, August 8th.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Trygve Seglem purchased 1,250,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, June 15th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $20.00 per share, for a total transaction of $25,000,000.00. Following the acquisition, the director directly owned 1,458,333 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $29,166,660. This represents a 600.00% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of KNOP. Acadian Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of KNOT Offshore Partners in the first quarter valued at $130,000. Russell Investments Group Ltd. grew its holdings in KNOT Offshore Partners by 115.0% during the 2nd quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 9,042 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $58,000 after purchasing an additional 4,836 shares during the last quarter. Occudo Quantitative Strategies LP purchased a new stake in KNOT Offshore Partners in the 2nd quarter worth about $68,000. Osaic Holdings Inc. lifted its stake in KNOT Offshore Partners by 220.3% in the second quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 16,557 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $104,000 after purchasing an additional 11,388 shares during the last quarter. Finally, ING Groep NV purchased a new position in shares of KNOT Offshore Partners during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $205,000. 26.82% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

KNOT Offshore Partners Stock Up 0.8%

KNOP opened at $10.68 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 0.24 and a current ratio of 0.25. KNOT Offshore Partners has a fifty-two week low of $6.95 and a fifty-two week high of $11.78. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $10.46 and its 200 day moving average is $10.50. The stock has a market cap of $359.49 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.78 and a beta of -0.05.

KNOT Offshore Partners (NYSE:KNOP) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 28th. The shipping company reported $0.08 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.17 by ($0.09). KNOT Offshore Partners had a return on equity of 6.36% and a net margin of 4.92%.The business had revenue of $92.01 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $90.35 million. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that KNOT Offshore Partners will post 0.09 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

KNOT Offshore Partners Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 13th. Investors of record on Monday, July 27th were given a $0.075 dividend. This is an increase from KNOT Offshore Partners’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.05. This represents a $0.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.8%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, July 27th. KNOT Offshore Partners’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 55.56%.

About KNOT Offshore Partners

KNOT Offshore Partners LP is a publicly traded limited partnership formed in 2013 to own and operate shuttle tankers under long?term charters in the offshore oil industry. Listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol KNOP, the partnership specializes in the transportation of crude oil from offshore production facilities to onshore refineries. Its fleet comprises moderne shuttle tankers equipped with dynamic positioning systems, enabling safe transfer operations in harsh weather and sea conditions.

The partnership’s vessels primarily serve fields in the North Sea, Brazil and West Africa, where they operate under multi?year contracts with major energy producers.