706,483 Shares in Safe Bulkers, Inc $SB Bought by Empowered Funds LLC

Key Points

• Empowered Funds LLC acquired 706,483 shares of Safe Bulkers in the second quarter, valued at approximately $4.46 million and representing a 0.69% stake. Institutional investors collectively own 21.69% of the company.
• Safe Bulkers reported stronger-than-expected quarterly results, with earnings of $0.28 per share versus the $0.22 consensus estimate and revenue of $87.47 million. The company also raised its quarterly dividend to $0.075 per share, implying a 3.5% annualized yield.
• Shares opened at $8.65, near their 12-month high of $8.76, while analysts maintain a consensus “Hold” rating and a $6.00 target price.

Empowered Funds LLC acquired a new position in Safe Bulkers, Inc (NYSE:SB - Free Report) in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 706,483 shares of the shipping company's stock, valued at approximately $4,458,000. Empowered Funds LLC owned 0.69% of Safe Bulkers at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in SB. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Safe Bulkers by 67.0% during the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 68,052 shares of the shipping company's stock worth $251,000 after purchasing an additional 27,292 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Safe Bulkers by 6.0% in the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 1,630,636 shares of the shipping company's stock worth $6,017,000 after buying an additional 91,662 shares during the last quarter. Jane Street Group LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Safe Bulkers by 3.7% in the 1st quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 135,870 shares of the shipping company's stock valued at $501,000 after buying an additional 4,836 shares during the period. Cetera Investment Advisers acquired a new position in shares of Safe Bulkers in the 2nd quarter valued at about $41,000. Finally, Sei Investments Co. bought a new stake in shares of Safe Bulkers during the 2nd quarter valued at about $116,000. Institutional investors own 21.69% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Safe Bulkers from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 1st. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $6.00.

Safe Bulkers Trading Up 1.5%

NYSE:SB opened at $8.65 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $880.83 million, a P/E ratio of 11.09 and a beta of 0.84. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $7.44 and a 200 day simple moving average of $6.83. 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, Inc has a 12-month low of $4.14 and a 12-month high of $8.76.

Safe Bulkers (NYSE:SB - Get Free Report) last issued its 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. The firm had revenue of $87.47 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $77.50 million. Safe Bulkers had a return on equity of 9.63% and a net margin of 28.29%.

Safe Bulkers Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, August 26th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 13th were given a dividend of $0.075 per share. This is an increase from Safe Bulkers's previous quarterly dividend of $0.06. This represents a $0.30 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.5%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, August 13th. Safe Bulkers's payout ratio is currently 38.46%.

Safe Bulkers Company Profile

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.

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