Frontline (NYSE:FRO) Stock Price Down 4.8% – Should You Sell?

Frontline PLC (NYSE:FRO) shares dropped 4.8% during trading on Friday . The stock traded as low as $36.77 and last traded at $36.5860. Approximately 1,514,562 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 58% from the average daily volume of 3,593,156 shares. The stock had previously closed at $38.44.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

FRO has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Frontline in a research report on Friday, March 27th. Piper Sandler lowered Frontline to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, February 27th. BTIG Research lifted their price target on Frontline from $42.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Wall Street Zen raised Frontline from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, April 4th. Finally, Dnb Carnegie lowered Frontline from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, March 2nd. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $39.00.

Frontline Stock Down 3.9%

The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $35.42 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $29.75. The company has a market capitalization of $8.23 billion, a PE ratio of 21.75 and a beta of 0.04. The company has a current ratio of 1.43, a quick ratio of 1.19 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09.

Frontline (NYSE:FRO) last announced its earnings results on Saturday, February 28th. The shipping company reported $1.03 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.13 by ($0.10). Frontline had a net margin of 19.31% and a return on equity of 16.51%. The company had revenue of $624.51 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $456.90 million. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.20 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 46.7% compared to the same quarter last year.

Frontline Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 19th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 12th were paid a $1.03 dividend. This is an increase from Frontline’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.19. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 12th. This represents a $4.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 11.1%. Frontline’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 242.35%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Frontline by 2.9% in the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC now owns 14,717 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $335,000 after purchasing an additional 418 shares during the last quarter. Cantor Fitzgerald L. P. grew its stake in shares of Frontline by 1.1% in the 3rd quarter. Cantor Fitzgerald L. P. now owns 38,601 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $880,000 after purchasing an additional 430 shares during the last quarter. Bank of Montreal Can grew its stake in shares of Frontline by 0.6% in the 4th quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 73,544 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $1,605,000 after purchasing an additional 460 shares during the last quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Frontline by 58.9% in the first quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 1,311 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $46,000 after buying an additional 486 shares in the last quarter. Finally, NFSG Corp boosted its stake in shares of Frontline by 50.0% in the first quarter. NFSG Corp now owns 1,500 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $52,000 after buying an additional 500 shares in the last quarter. 22.70% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Frontline Company Profile

Frontline Ltd. (NYSE:FRO) is a leading global shipping company specializing in the seaborne transportation of crude oil and petroleum products. The company’s core business activities encompass the ownership and operation of very large crude carriers (VLCCs), Suezmax tankers and Aframax vessels. Through long-term charters, spot market operations and time charters, Frontline provides flexible shipping solutions that cater to a diverse set of energy producers, refiners and trading houses worldwide.

Frontline’s fleet is geared toward high-capacity, ocean-going tankers capable of carrying large volumes of crude oil over intercontinental distances.