Frontline plc to Issue Quarterly Dividend of $0.34 (NYSE:FRO)

Frontline plc (NYSE:FRO) announced a quarterly dividend on Friday, November 29th,Wall Street Journal reports. Investors of record on Wednesday, December 11th will be paid a dividend of 0.34 per share by the shipping company on Tuesday, December 31st. This represents a $1.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 8.41%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, December 11th.

Frontline has raised its dividend payment by an average of 17.1% annually over the last three years. Frontline has a payout ratio of 81.0% indicating that its dividend is currently covered by earnings, but may not be in the future if the company’s earnings decline. Equities analysts expect Frontline to earn $3.20 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $2.48 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 77.5%.

Frontline Price Performance

Shares of FRO stock traded down $0.61 during trading on Friday, reaching $16.18. 2,801,078 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,874,246. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.40, a quick ratio of 1.38 and a current ratio of 1.38. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $21.03 and its 200 day moving average is $23.53. Frontline has a 1 year low of $16.10 and a 1 year high of $29.39.

Frontline (NYSE:FRO) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, August 30th. The shipping company reported $0.62 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.65 by ($0.03). The business had revenue of $409.72 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $383.88 million. Frontline had a net margin of 25.64% and a return on equity of 19.23%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.94 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Frontline will post 1.83 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently commented on FRO shares. Jefferies Financial Group restated a “buy” rating and set a $26.00 price target on shares of Frontline in a research note on Wednesday. Fearnley Fonds upgraded shares of Frontline to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, September 27th. StockNews.com raised shares of Frontline to a “sell” rating in a report on Thursday, September 5th. Finally, BTIG Research raised shares of Frontline from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $30.00 price target on the stock in a report on Monday, October 7th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating, four have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $27.26.

Frontline Company Profile

Frontline plc, a shipping company, engages in the seaborne transportation of crude oil and oil products worldwide. It owns and operates oil and product tankers. As of December 31, 2022, the company operated a fleet of 70 vessels. It is also involved in the charter, purchase, and sale of vessels. The company was founded in 1985 and is based in Limassol, Cyprus.