Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd Grows Stock Holdings in Global Ship Lease, Inc. $GSL

Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd lifted its position in Global Ship Lease, Inc. (NYSE:GSL) by 35.8% in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 89,933 shares of the shipping company’s stock after purchasing an additional 23,720 shares during the quarter. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd’s holdings in Global Ship Lease were worth $3,348,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Triumph Capital Management bought a new stake in Global Ship Lease in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $25,000. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. bought a new stake in Global Ship Lease in the 4th quarter worth $29,000. Hilton Head Capital Partners LLC purchased a new position in Global Ship Lease during the 4th quarter valued at about $35,000. SHP Wealth Management bought a new position in shares of Global Ship Lease during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Finally, LOM Asset Management Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Global Ship Lease in the 4th quarter worth about $49,000. 50.08% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Global Ship Lease Stock Performance

Shares of GSL stock traded up $0.12 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $39.11. 50,569 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 346,276. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $39.06 and a 200 day moving average price of $37.96. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 2.26 and a quick ratio of 2.21. The company has a market cap of $1.40 billion, a P/E ratio of 3.72 and a beta of 0.90. Global Ship Lease, Inc. has a 12-month low of $26.80 and a 12-month high of $42.70.

Global Ship Lease (NYSE:GSL) last released its earnings results on Friday, May 22nd. The shipping company reported $2.56 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.40 by $0.16. Global Ship Lease had a net margin of 50.01% and a return on equity of 21.11%. The company had revenue of $198.08 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $182.87 million. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Global Ship Lease, Inc. will post 9.5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Global Ship Lease Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 3rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 22nd were issued a $0.625 dividend. This represents a $2.50 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 22nd. Global Ship Lease’s payout ratio is 23.74%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently commented on GSL. Zacks Research cut shares of Global Ship Lease from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, June 3rd. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Global Ship Lease in a report on Tuesday, April 21st. Wall Street Zen upgraded Global Ship Lease from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, May 30th. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on Global Ship Lease in a research report on Friday, April 24th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $45.00 price target for the company. Finally, Fearnley Fonds upgraded shares of Global Ship Lease from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, April 30th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have assigned a Buy rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $46.50.

Global Ship Lease Profile

Global Ship Lease (NYSE: GSL) is a Bermuda-based containership charter owner focused on acquiring, owning and leasing modern, fuel-efficient vessels to major liner operators. Founded in 2011 and listed on the New York Stock Exchange the same year, the company’s fleet primarily comprises post-Panamax containerships designed to serve the high-volume Asia–Europe and transpacific shipping lanes. By specializing in long-term charter agreements, Global Ship Lease aims to maintain stable revenue streams and minimize spot-market volatility.

The company’s business model centers on negotiating multi-year time charters with leading global shipping lines.