Nordic American Tankers Target of Unusually High Options Trading (NYSE:NAT)

Nordic American Tankers Limited (NYSE:NAT) saw unusually large options trading on Wednesday. Stock investors bought 4,510 call options on the stock. This is an increase of approximately 52% compared to the average daily volume of 2,964 call options.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have issued reports on NAT. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “hold” rating and set a $3.50 target price on shares of Nordic American Tankers in a research report on Friday, November 28th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Nordic American Tankers from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, January 17th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Nordic American Tankers in a report on Monday, December 29th. Finally, Evercore increased their target price on shares of Nordic American Tankers from $2.50 to $3.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 28th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $3.25.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Nordic American Tankers

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Silver Oak Securities Incorporated bought a new stake in Nordic American Tankers in the third quarter valued at $1,362,000. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Nordic American Tankers by 33.7% in the 2nd quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 15,865 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $42,000 after acquiring an additional 3,998 shares in the last quarter. MGO One Seven LLC bought a new stake in shares of Nordic American Tankers during the second quarter valued at approximately $186,000. American Century Companies Inc. grew its stake in Nordic American Tankers by 15.2% in the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 4,203,395 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $11,055,000 after purchasing an additional 554,368 shares during the period. Finally, Bank of Montreal Can lifted its position in Nordic American Tankers by 140.6% during the second quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 33,370 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $88,000 after buying an additional 19,500 shares during the period. 44.29% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Nordic American Tankers Trading Up 3.4%

Shares of NYSE NAT traded up $0.16 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $4.78. The stock had a trading volume of 1,181,901 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,991,084. The firm has a market cap of $1.01 billion, a P/E ratio of 239.37 and a beta of -0.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 1.64 and a current ratio of 1.95. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $3.87 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $3.53. Nordic American Tankers has a 1 year low of $2.13 and a 1 year high of $4.77.

Nordic American Tankers (NYSE:NAT) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, November 28th. The shipping company reported ($0.01) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.01 by ($0.02). The firm had revenue of $40.18 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $52.89 million. Nordic American Tankers had a net margin of 1.12% and a return on equity of 0.39%. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Nordic American Tankers will post 0.24 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Nordic American Tankers Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 22nd. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 8th were given a dividend of $0.13 per share. This represents a $0.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 10.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 8th. This is a positive change from Nordic American Tankers’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.10. Nordic American Tankers’s dividend payout ratio is currently 2,600.00%.

Nordic American Tankers Company Profile

Nordic American Tankers Limited is a Bermuda-based shipping company specializing in the ownership and operation of Suezmax crude oil tankers. The company’s fleet is employed on the spot and period charter markets, transporting crude oil across major global trade routes. By focusing on commercially flexible employment strategies, Nordic American Tankers seeks to optimize vessel utilization and generate stable income for shareholders.

Founded in 1995 and headquartered in Hamilton, Bermuda, Nordic American Tankers maintains technical and commercial management arrangements through established ship-management partners.