Safe Bulkers (NYSE:SB) Shares Gap Down – Should You Sell?

Safe Bulkers, Inc (NYSE:SB)’s share price gapped down prior to trading on Wednesday . The stock had previously closed at $8.93, but opened at $8.16. Safe Bulkers shares last traded at $8.2270, with a volume of 1,517,841 shares trading hands.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, Wall Street Zen cut shares of Safe Bulkers from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, August 1st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $6.00.

Safe Bulkers Stock Down 6.8%

The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $7.73 and a 200 day simple moving average of $6.96. The stock has a market capitalization of $847.76 million, a P/E ratio of 10.71 and a beta of 0.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39, a current ratio of 1.00 and a quick ratio of 1.00.

Safe Bulkers (NYSE:SB) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 28th. The shipping company reported $0.28 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.22 by $0.06. Safe Bulkers had a return on equity of 9.63% and a net margin of 28.29%.The company had revenue of $87.47 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $77.50 million.

Safe Bulkers Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, August 26th. Investors of record on Thursday, August 13th were given a dividend of $0.075 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, August 13th. This represents a $0.30 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.6%. This is a boost from Safe Bulkers’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.06. Safe Bulkers’s dividend payout ratio is 38.46%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Safe Bulkers

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Sei Investments Co. lifted its position in shares of Safe Bulkers by 692.7% in the 1st quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 262,615 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $1,662,000 after purchasing an additional 229,486 shares during the period. Lazard Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Safe Bulkers during the first quarter worth $1,625,000. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Safe Bulkers during the second quarter worth $22,450,000. Manatuck Hill Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Safe Bulkers during the second quarter worth $1,641,000. Finally, Empowered Funds LLC bought a new position in Safe Bulkers during the second quarter worth $4,458,000. 21.69% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.