Nordic American Tankers (NYSE:NAT) Upgraded to Strong-Buy at Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Nordic American Tankers (NYSE:NAT) from a buy rating to a strong-buy rating in a research note published on Saturday.

Separately, B. Riley Financial increased their price objective on shares of Nordic American Tankers from $7.50 to $8.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $5.33.

Nordic American Tankers Stock Performance

Shares of NAT stock opened at $6.76 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 3.00, a quick ratio of 2.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.83. Nordic American Tankers has a 12-month low of $3.00 and a 12-month high of $7.20. The business’s 50 day moving average is $6.35 and its two-hundred day moving average is $5.77. The company has a market capitalization of $1.43 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.46 and a beta of -0.57.

Nordic American Tankers (NYSE:NAT) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 27th. The shipping company reported $0.32 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.30 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $79.30 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $84.18 million. Nordic American Tankers had a return on equity of 9.16% and a net margin of 24.19%. Analysts expect that Nordic American Tankers will post 0.6 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Nordic American Tankers Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 24th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, September 10th will be issued a dividend of $0.27 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, September 10th. This is a positive change from Nordic American Tankers’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. This represents a $1.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 16.0%. Nordic American Tankers’s payout ratio is currently 325.93%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Nordic American Tankers

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of NAT. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio purchased a new stake in Nordic American Tankers during the 2nd quarter valued at about $30,000. FNY Investment Advisers LLC acquired a new stake in Nordic American Tankers in the 2nd quarter valued at about $32,000. Torren Management LLC purchased a new position in Nordic American Tankers in the 4th quarter worth approximately $34,000. ROI Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Nordic American Tankers in the 4th quarter worth approximately $36,000. Finally, Parkside Financial Bank & Trust lifted its stake in Nordic American Tankers by 2,800.0% in the 4th quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 10,875 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $37,000 after purchasing an additional 10,500 shares in the last quarter. 44.29% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Nordic American Tankers

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.