Wall Street Zen Downgrades KNOT Offshore Partners (NYSE:KNOP) to Sell

KNOT Offshore Partners (NYSE:KNOP) was downgraded by stock analysts at Wall Street Zen from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note issued on Saturday.

Other equities research analysts have also issued reports about the company. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of KNOT Offshore Partners in a research report on Wednesday, July 29th. Zacks Research upgraded KNOT Offshore Partners from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 4th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has issued a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, KNOT Offshore Partners currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $14.00.

KNOT Offshore Partners Price Performance

KNOT Offshore Partners stock traded up $0.30 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $10.90. 61,459 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 43,107. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 0.24 and a current ratio of 0.25. The stock has a market capitalization of $366.89 million, a P/E ratio of 20.19 and a beta of -0.05. KNOT Offshore Partners has a 12 month low of $7.65 and a 12 month high of $11.78. The business’s 50-day moving average is $10.49 and its two-hundred day moving average is $10.51.

KNOT Offshore Partners (NYSE:KNOP) last posted its 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 net margin of 4.92% and a return on equity of 6.36%. The firm had revenue of $92.01 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $90.35 million. Equities research analysts expect that KNOT Offshore Partners will post 0.09 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Trygve Seglem purchased 1,250,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 15th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $20.00 per share, with a total value of $25,000,000.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director directly owned 1,458,333 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $29,166,660. This trade represents a 600.00% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Renaissance Technologies LLC lifted its holdings in KNOT Offshore Partners by 8.8% during the 1st quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 1,335,435 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $13,461,000 after buying an additional 108,400 shares in the last quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC acquired a new stake in shares of KNOT Offshore Partners in the 1st quarter valued at $643,000. American Beacon Advisors Inc. raised its position in shares of KNOT Offshore Partners by 182.6% during the fourth quarter. American Beacon Advisors Inc. now owns 503,895 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $5,215,000 after acquiring an additional 325,588 shares during the last quarter. Royal Bank of Canada bought a new stake in shares of KNOT Offshore Partners during the first quarter worth $25,000. Finally, Cetera Investment Advisers acquired a new position in shares of KNOT Offshore Partners during the fourth quarter valued at $125,000. Institutional investors own 26.82% of the company’s stock.

KNOT Offshore Partners Company Profile

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.