BW LPG Limited (NYSE:BWLP) Given Consensus Recommendation of "Moderate Buy" by Analysts

Key Points

• BW LPG has a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating from five analysts: three recommend buying the stock, while two rate it a hold.
• The company reported quarterly EPS of $0.79, below the $1.17 consensus estimate, despite revenue of $1.01 billion; shares opened at $23.90 and remain near their 52-week high.
• BW LPG increased its quarterly dividend to $8.8914 per share, equivalent to an annualized dividend of $35.57 and a stated yield of 148.8%; several institutional investors also recently increased their positions.

Shares of BW LPG Limited (NYSE:BWLP - Get Free Report) have been assigned a consensus recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from the five brokerages that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and three have issued a buy recommendation on the company.

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on BWLP shares. Clarkson Capital upgraded BW LPG from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, August 20th. Wall Street Zen cut BW LPG from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 8th. Dnb Carnegie raised shares of BW LPG from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, May 18th. Pareto Securities lowered shares of BW LPG from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 16th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised shares of BW LPG from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 15th.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On BW LPG

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in BW LPG by 1.0% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 3,621,504 shares of the company's stock valued at $47,163,000 after acquiring an additional 35,066 shares during the period. Ameriprise Financial Inc. raised its position in shares of BW LPG by 12.1% during the 3rd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 2,530,196 shares of the company's stock worth $36,131,000 after purchasing an additional 272,882 shares during the period. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. raised its position in shares of BW LPG by 8.8% during the 2nd quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 1,395,760 shares of the company's stock worth $16,413,000 after purchasing an additional 113,275 shares during the period. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company lifted its holdings in shares of BW LPG by 41.4% in the 2nd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 560,231 shares of the company's stock worth $6,613,000 after purchasing an additional 164,057 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership bought a new stake in shares of BW LPG in the 1st quarter worth approximately $9,646,000.

BW LPG Stock Down 0.2%

NYSE:BWLP opened at $23.90 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $3.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.13 and a beta of 0.99. BW LPG has a one year low of $11.72 and a one year high of $25.48. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $21.07 and a 200 day simple moving average of $19.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a quick ratio of 1.29 and a current ratio of 1.47.

BW LPG (NYSE:BWLP - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, August 28th. The company reported $0.79 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.17 by ($0.38). BW LPG had a net margin of 12.64% and a return on equity of 22.75%. The firm had revenue of $1.01 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $318.01 million.

BW LPG Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 16th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 8th will be given a dividend of $8.8914 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 8th. This represents a $35.57 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 148.8%. This is a boost from BW LPG's previous quarterly dividend of $6.20. BW LPG's payout ratio is currently 91.16%.

About BW LPG

BW LPG NYSE: BWLP is a pure‐play owner and operator of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) carriers. The company's core business centers on the maritime transportation of LPG, predominantly propane and butane, under both time‐ and voyage‐charter arrangements. Its fleet comprises pressurized and semi‐refrigerated vessels designed to meet the specific requirements of LPG producers, traders and end‐users around the world.

Headquartered in Singapore, BW LPG serves a global customer base, with commercial offices in key energy hubs including Houston, London, Dubai and Tokyo.

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