Safe Bulkers (NYSE:SB) Downgraded by StockNews.com to “Hold”

StockNews.com downgraded shares of Safe Bulkers (NYSE:SB) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research note issued to investors on Monday.

Other research analysts have also issued reports about the company. DNB Markets raised Safe Bulkers from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $4.20 target price for the company in a research report on Monday. Jefferies Financial Group restated a “buy” rating and set a $6.00 price objective on shares of Safe Bulkers in a research report on Thursday, November 14th.

Safe Bulkers Price Performance

SB stock opened at $3.57 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $380.67 million, a P/E ratio of 3.96 and a beta of 0.93. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $3.66 and a 200-day moving average price of $4.41. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52, a quick ratio of 1.34 and a current ratio of 1.34. Safe Bulkers has a 52-week low of $3.31 and a 52-week high of $6.33.

Safe Bulkers Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 2nd were given a dividend of $0.05 per share. This represents a $0.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.61%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 2nd. Safe Bulkers’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 22.22%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. nVerses Capital LLC grew its stake in Safe Bulkers by 269.0% during the third quarter. nVerses Capital LLC now owns 10,700 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $55,000 after purchasing an additional 7,800 shares during the period. Intech Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in Safe Bulkers in the third quarter valued at approximately $86,000. Ballentine Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Safe Bulkers during the 4th quarter worth approximately $89,000. Aigen Investment Management LP acquired a new stake in shares of Safe Bulkers during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $90,000. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC increased its stake in shares of Safe Bulkers by 19.6% in the 4th quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 25,204 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $90,000 after acquiring an additional 4,122 shares in the last quarter. 21.69% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Safe Bulkers Company Profile

Safe Bulkers, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, provides marine drybulk transportation services. It owns and operates drybulk vessels for transporting bulk cargoes primarily coal, grain, and iron ore. The company has a fleet of 47 drybulk vessels having an aggregate carrying capacity of 4,719,600 deadweight tons.