Torm (NASDAQ:TRMD) Sets New 12-Month High – Here’s Why

Torm Plc (NASDAQ:TRMD) hit a new 52-week high on Friday . The company traded as high as $35.42 and last traded at $35.3720, with a volume of 326656 shares. The stock had previously closed at $34.18.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have commented on TRMD. Evercore reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $38.00 price target on shares of Torm in a research report on Wednesday, August 26th. Weiss Ratings raised Torm from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research report on Friday, August 28th. Pareto Securities downgraded Torm from a “hold” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 13th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded Torm from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, August 29th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has assigned a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $38.00.

Torm Price Performance

The firm has a market cap of $3.61 billion, a P/E ratio of 5.83 and a beta of 0.12. The company has a fifty day moving average of $29.76 and a 200-day moving average of $29.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a current ratio of 2.27 and a quick ratio of 1.97.

Torm (NASDAQ:TRMD) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 26th. The company reported $3.25 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.31 by ($0.06). The company had revenue of $662.80 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $499.01 million. Torm had a net margin of 35.51% and a return on equity of 27.24%.

Torm Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 24th. Investors of record on Thursday, September 10th will be given a dividend of $2.40 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, September 10th. This is an increase from Torm’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. This represents a $9.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 27.1%. Torm’s payout ratio is 33.61%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Torm

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Royal Bank of Canada boosted its position in Torm by 94.5% in the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 70,962 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,980,000 after purchasing an additional 34,482 shares during the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE grew its stake in Torm by 209.8% in the 1st quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 130,421 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,639,000 after purchasing an additional 88,318 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. purchased a new stake in shares of Torm during the 2nd quarter valued at $2,632,000. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio increased its position in shares of Torm by 153.8% during the 1st quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio now owns 78,203 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,190,000 after purchasing an additional 47,386 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Torm during the 4th quarter valued at $24,830,000. 73.89% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Torm Company Profile

Torm A/S (NASDAQ: TRMD) is an international shipping company specializing in the transportation of refined petroleum products. The firm owns and operates a modern fleet of product tankers, including both Handysize and MR vessels, which are designed to carry a broad range of clean petroleum cargoes such as gasoline, jet fuel and diesel. Torm’s core business revolves around voyage and time-charter contracts with major oil companies, trading houses and other energy sector clients around the world.

The company’s fleet is deployed on global trade routes, with particular focus on major refining and consumption regions in Europe, North America and Asia.