Todd Asset Management LLC Takes $2.81 Million Position in Frontline plc (NYSE:FRO)

Todd Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Frontline plc (NYSE:FRO) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 140,200 shares of the shipping company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,811,000. Todd Asset Management LLC owned 0.06% of Frontline at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Frontline by 175.7% during the third quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 140,103 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $2,631,000 after purchasing an additional 89,284 shares during the period. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. increased its stake in shares of Frontline by 12.8% during the third quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 268,060 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $5,034,000 after buying an additional 30,422 shares during the period. Raymond James & Associates purchased a new stake in Frontline in the third quarter worth $523,000. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in Frontline by 7.1% in the third quarter. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. now owns 33,490 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $629,000 after acquiring an additional 2,221 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank increased its position in Frontline by 17.6% during the 3rd quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 27,259 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $512,000 after purchasing an additional 4,088 shares during the period. 22.70% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on FRO shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of Frontline from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $17.00 to $26.00 in a research note on Tuesday, January 9th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded Frontline from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $22.00 to $30.00 in a report on Thursday, March 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on Frontline from $23.00 to $22.30 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, March 1st. Finally, StockNews.com cut Frontline from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Wednesday.

Frontline Stock Up 0.7 %

FRO traded up $0.17 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $24.74. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,144,136 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,579,293. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $23.41 and its 200-day moving average is $22.18. Frontline plc has a 1 year low of $13.35 and a 1 year high of $25.14. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.39 and a beta of 0.03. The company has a current ratio of 1.78, a quick ratio of 1.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.40.

Frontline (NYSE:FRO) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 29th. The shipping company reported $0.46 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.51 by ($0.05). Frontline had a net margin of 35.95% and a return on equity of 26.00%. The company had revenue of $415.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $280.36 million. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.97 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 21.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts expect that Frontline plc will post 3.09 EPS for the current year.

Frontline Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 27th. Investors of record on Friday, March 15th were given a dividend of $0.37 per share. This represents a $1.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.98%. This is an increase from Frontline’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.30. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 14th. Frontline’s dividend payout ratio is 50.17%.

Frontline Company Profile

Frontline plc, a shipping company, engages in the seaborne transportation of crude oil and oil products worldwide. It owns and operates oil and product tankers. As of December 31, 2022, the company operated a fleet of 70 vessels. It is also involved in the charter, purchase, and sale of vessels. The company was founded in 1985 and is based in Limassol, Cyprus.