Safe Bulkers (NYSE:SB) Stock Passes Above 200 Day Moving Average – What’s Next?

Safe Bulkers, Inc (NYSE:SB) shares crossed above its two hundred day moving average during trading on Monday . The stock has a two hundred day moving average of $5.08 and traded as high as $6.12. Safe Bulkers shares last traded at $6.0750, with a volume of 612,632 shares changing hands.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price objective on Safe Bulkers from $5.00 to $6.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 26th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Safe Bulkers in a report on Monday, December 29th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Safe Bulkers presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $6.00.

Safe Bulkers Price Performance

The firm has a market cap of $639.53 million, a P/E ratio of 20.85 and a beta of 1.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60, a current ratio of 2.90 and a quick ratio of 2.63. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $5.83 and its 200 day moving average is $5.10.

Safe Bulkers (NYSE:SB) last announced its earnings results on Friday, February 13th. The shipping company reported $0.14 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.14. Safe Bulkers had a net margin of 13.99% and a return on equity of 4.91%. The business had revenue of $72.57 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $70.00 million. As a group, analysts anticipate that Safe Bulkers, Inc will post 0.62 earnings per share for the current year.

Safe Bulkers Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 18th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 2nd will be paid a dividend of $0.05 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 2nd. This represents a $0.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.2%. Safe Bulkers’s payout ratio is presently 66.67%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Safe Bulkers

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Safe Bulkers by 30.4% in the 4th quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 2,651,114 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $12,778,000 after purchasing an additional 617,711 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. grew its position in Safe Bulkers by 16.6% during the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,441,089 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $5,202,000 after purchasing an additional 204,874 shares during the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. increased its stake in Safe Bulkers by 5.0% during the 2nd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 1,314,711 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $4,739,000 after purchasing an additional 62,931 shares in the last quarter. Bridgeway Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Safe Bulkers by 3.2% in the fourth quarter. Bridgeway Capital Management LLC now owns 1,187,934 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $5,726,000 after buying an additional 36,356 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Fearnley Asset Management AS purchased a new position in Safe Bulkers in the fourth quarter worth about $5,112,000. 21.69% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Safe Bulkers

Safe Bulkers Inc (NYSE: SB) is a dry bulk shipping company engaged in the ocean transport of commodities such as iron ore, coal, grain, and fertilizers. The company operates a modern fleet of vessels, including Panamax, Supramax and Kamsarmax bulk carriers, designed to serve a variety of trade routes and cargo types. Safe Bulkers’ fleet is employed under both time charter and voyage charter arrangements, offering flexibility to respond to market demand and optimize vessel utilization.

Founded in 2008, Safe Bulkers began trading its shares on the New York Stock Exchange in the same year, establishing itself as a publicly listed provider of dry bulk transportation services.