Navigator Holdings Ltd. (NYSE:NVGS) Sees Significant Decline in Short Interest

Navigator Holdings Ltd. (NYSE:NVGS) was the target of a large drop in short interest in December. As of December 15th, there was short interest totaling 1,090,887 shares, a drop of 16.8% from the November 30th total of 1,311,295 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 328,332 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 3.3 days. Approximately 1.6% of the company’s stock are sold short. Approximately 1.6% of the company’s stock are sold short. Based on an average trading volume of 328,332 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 3.3 days.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have recently commented on NVGS shares. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $19.00 target price on shares of Navigator in a report on Wednesday, November 5th. Zacks Research upgraded Navigator from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 25th. Pareto Securities began coverage on Navigator in a research report on Tuesday, December 9th. They set a “buy” rating for the company. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Navigator in a research report on Monday. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered Navigator from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and four have assigned a Buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $21.50.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Navigator

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Focus Partners Wealth lifted its stake in Navigator by 3.7% in the 3rd quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 37,394 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $579,000 after purchasing an additional 1,334 shares in the last quarter. Aquatic Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Navigator by 8.0% in the third quarter. Aquatic Capital Management LLC now owns 18,194 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $282,000 after buying an additional 1,353 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. boosted its stake in Navigator by 1.4% during the second quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 132,508 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $1,875,000 after buying an additional 1,892 shares during the period. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. grew its position in Navigator by 2,794.4% during the third quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 2,055 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 1,984 shares in the last quarter. Finally, California State Teachers Retirement System purchased a new position in Navigator during the second quarter worth about $29,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 18.95% of the company’s stock.

Navigator Stock Performance

NYSE NVGS traded up $0.07 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $17.25. 80,555 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 345,125. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a current ratio of 1.18. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.42, a PEG ratio of 0.55 and a beta of 0.51. Navigator has a 12-month low of $10.55 and a 12-month high of $18.29. The business has a 50 day moving average of $17.25 and a 200-day moving average of $16.20.

Navigator (NYSE:NVGS) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, November 4th. The shipping company reported $0.36 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.36. The company had revenue of $153.09 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $133.84 million. Navigator had a net margin of 17.85% and a return on equity of 6.83%. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Navigator will post 1.25 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Navigator Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 16th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, November 25th were issued a dividend of $0.07 per share. This represents a $0.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, November 25th. This is a boost from Navigator’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.05. Navigator’s payout ratio is presently 18.54%.

About Navigator

Navigator Holdings Ltd. is a global shipping company specializing in the seaborne transportation of liquefied gases. The company’s fleet is purpose-built to carry a range of petrochemical gases, including liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), ethylene, propylene and ammonia. Navigator’s vessels are designed to meet the stringent safety and environmental standards required for handling pressurized and refrigerated gases, offering flexible capacity to customers across the energy and chemical sectors.

Navigator operates one of the largest and most modern fleets of gas carriers in the industry, with vessels ranging from fully pressurized gas carriers to specialized very large ethane carriers (VLECs).