Navios Maritime Partners (NYSE:NMM) Upgraded at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Navios Maritime Partners (NYSE:NMM) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research report sent to investors on Thursday morning.

Navios Maritime Partners Trading Up 1.8 %

Shares of NMM opened at $40.05 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 1.13, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $42.59 and a 200 day moving average price of $49.25. Navios Maritime Partners has a 12-month low of $37.75 and a 12-month high of $65.89. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 3.34 and a beta of 1.87.

Navios Maritime Partners (NYSE:NMM) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The shipping company reported $2.61 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.54 by ($1.93). The firm had revenue of $302.99 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $340.83 million. Navios Maritime Partners had a return on equity of 11.64% and a net margin of 27.53%. Sell-side analysts forecast that Navios Maritime Partners will post 12.64 EPS for the current year.

Navios Maritime Partners Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 13th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 10th were given a $0.05 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 10th. This represents a $0.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.50%. Navios Maritime Partners’s payout ratio is currently 1.67%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Navios Maritime Partners

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. BNP Paribas Financial Markets increased its holdings in Navios Maritime Partners by 21.8% in the 3rd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 2,149 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $135,000 after purchasing an additional 384 shares during the last quarter. LPL Financial LLC purchased a new position in shares of Navios Maritime Partners during the fourth quarter worth $204,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Navios Maritime Partners in the fourth quarter valued at $219,000. First Trust Advisors LP raised its holdings in shares of Navios Maritime Partners by 23.7% in the 4th quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 5,325 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $231,000 after buying an additional 1,020 shares during the period. Finally, Merrion Investment Management Co LLC lifted its stake in Navios Maritime Partners by 56.9% during the 4th quarter. Merrion Investment Management Co LLC now owns 10,040 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $435,000 after acquiring an additional 3,640 shares in the last quarter. 62.74% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Navios Maritime Partners

Navios Maritime Partners L.P. owns and operates dry cargo vessels in Asia, Europe, North America, and Australia. The company offers seaborne transportation services for a range of liquid and dry cargo commodities, including crude oil, refined petroleum, chemicals, iron ore, coal, grain, fertilizer, and containers, as well as charters its vessels under short, medium, and longer-term charters.