DHT (NYSE:DHT) Reaches New 52-Week High – Should You Buy?

DHT Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:DHT)’s share price reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Monday . The stock traded as high as $20.55 and last traded at $18.7770, with a volume of 2885447 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $19.49.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. Wall Street Zen downgraded DHT from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Sunday, January 25th. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of DHT in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. Finally, BTIG Research raised their target price on DHT from $16.00 to $18.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 4th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $16.33.

DHT Price Performance

The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $14.27 and a 200-day simple moving average of $13.06. The company has a market cap of $3.09 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.73 and a beta of -0.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34, a current ratio of 2.80 and a quick ratio of 2.47.

DHT (NYSE:DHT) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 4th. The shipping company reported $0.41 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.40 by $0.01. DHT had a return on equity of 17.70% and a net margin of 42.35%.The business had revenue of $117.80 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $116.96 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.34 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 37.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts predict that DHT Holdings, Inc. will post 0.94 earnings per share for the current year.

DHT Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 26th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, February 19th were paid a dividend of $0.41 per share. This is a boost from DHT’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.18. This represents a $1.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 8.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 19th. DHT’s payout ratio is currently 125.19%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of DHT by 178.9% in the 1st quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 70,582 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $741,000 after acquiring an additional 45,275 shares in the last quarter. CWM LLC raised its stake in DHT by 196.1% during the 2nd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 9,071 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $98,000 after purchasing an additional 6,008 shares during the period. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of DHT in the second quarter valued at $171,000. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd boosted its position in shares of DHT by 1,598.8% in the second quarter. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd now owns 174,364 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $1,885,000 after buying an additional 164,100 shares during the period. Finally, Castlekeep Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of DHT during the second quarter valued at $1,179,000. 58.53% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About DHT

DHT Holdings, Inc (NYSE: DHT) is a Bermuda-based independent crude oil tanker company that provides seaborne transportation of crude oil on a worldwide basis. The company’s core business involves the ownership and operation of a modern fleet of Very Large Crude Carriers (VLCCs) and Suezmax tankers, which are chartered to oil producers, trading houses and national oil companies. Through spot charters, time-charters and tanker pooling arrangements, DHT connects crude oil exporters with refining hubs in Asia, Europe, North America and other global markets.

Founded in 2005 and listed on the New York Stock Exchange later that year, DHT has grown its presence in the maritime sector by focusing on operational efficiency and disciplined capital management.