Safe Bulkers (NYSE:SB) Announces Earnings Results, Beats Expectations By $0.06 EPS

Safe Bulkers (NYSE:SB) released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday. The shipping company reported $0.28 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.22 by $0.06, FiscalAI reports. Safe Bulkers had a return on equity of 6.45% and a net margin of 18.73%.The firm had revenue of $87.47 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $77.50 million.

Safe Bulkers Price Performance

Shares of Safe Bulkers stock traded down $0.03 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $7.49. The company had a trading volume of 585,400 shares, compared to its average volume of 718,825. The company has a current ratio of 1.37, a quick ratio of 1.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46. The company has a market capitalization of $765.82 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.64 and a beta of 0.84. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $6.77 and a 200 day simple moving average of $6.38. Safe Bulkers has a 1-year low of $3.61 and a 1-year high of $7.80.

Safe Bulkers Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 16th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 30th were paid a dividend of $0.06 per share. This represents a $0.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.2%. This is an increase from Safe Bulkers’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.05. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, June 30th. Safe Bulkers’s payout ratio is currently 53.33%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, Wall Street Zen upgraded Safe Bulkers from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, June 29th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Safe Bulkers currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $6.00.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV acquired a new stake in shares of Safe Bulkers in the 4th quarter valued at $48,000. Mackenzie Financial Corp acquired a new position in shares of Safe Bulkers during the fourth quarter valued at $59,000. Empowered Funds LLC boosted its holdings in Safe Bulkers by 6.0% in the fourth quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 645,834 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $3,113,000 after acquiring an additional 36,356 shares during the last quarter. XTX Topco Ltd boosted its holdings in Safe Bulkers by 86.5% in the fourth quarter. XTX Topco Ltd now owns 68,984 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $333,000 after acquiring an additional 32,001 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC increased its position in Safe Bulkers by 296.2% in the fourth quarter. Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC now owns 41,018 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $198,000 after purchasing an additional 30,664 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 21.69% of the company’s stock.

About Safe Bulkers

Safe Bulkers Inc (NYSE: SB) is a dry bulk shipping company engaged in the ocean transport of commodities such as iron ore, coal, grain, and fertilizers. The company operates a modern fleet of vessels, including Panamax, Supramax and Kamsarmax bulk carriers, designed to serve a variety of trade routes and cargo types. Safe Bulkers’ fleet is employed under both time charter and voyage charter arrangements, offering flexibility to respond to market demand and optimize vessel utilization.

Founded in 2008, Safe Bulkers began trading its shares on the New York Stock Exchange in the same year, establishing itself as a publicly listed provider of dry bulk transportation services.