AQR Capital Management LLC Purchases 119,000 Shares of Scorpio Tankers Inc. $STNG

Key Points

• AQR Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Scorpio Tankers Inc. by 55.1%, acquiring an additional 119,000 shares and holding a total of 334,858 shares worth approximately $12.58 million.
• Bank of America has upgraded Scorpio Tankers from a "neutral" to a "buy" rating, raising the target price from $49.00 to $60.00, while Jefferies Financial Group set a new price objective of $70.00.
• Scorpio Tankers declared a quarterly dividend of $0.40, reflecting a 2.8% annual yield, with a payout ratio of 21.80%.

AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Scorpio Tankers Inc. (NYSE:STNG - Free Report) by 55.1% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 334,858 shares of the shipping company's stock after purchasing an additional 119,000 shares during the quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC owned 0.66% of Scorpio Tankers worth $12,584,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of STNG. Pacer Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in Scorpio Tankers in the first quarter valued at about $19,471,000. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in Scorpio Tankers by 6.7% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 2,678,503 shares of the shipping company's stock valued at $100,658,000 after buying an additional 167,218 shares in the last quarter. Nuveen LLC acquired a new stake in Scorpio Tankers in the first quarter valued at about $4,666,000. Victory Capital Management Inc. boosted its stake in Scorpio Tankers by 78.0% in the first quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 253,966 shares of the shipping company's stock valued at $9,544,000 after buying an additional 111,270 shares in the last quarter. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. boosted its stake in Scorpio Tankers by 4.3% in the first quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,625,131 shares of the shipping company's stock valued at $61,072,000 after buying an additional 66,729 shares in the last quarter. 54.64% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

STNG has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price objective on Scorpio Tankers from $65.00 to $70.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday. Bank of America raised Scorpio Tankers from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and lifted their price target for the company from $49.00 to $60.00 in a research note on Monday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have given a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $59.00.

Scorpio Tankers Trading Up 0.9%

Shares of STNG traded up $0.54 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $58.82. 915,474 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 985,205. Scorpio Tankers Inc. has a 52 week low of $30.63 and a 52 week high of $74.67. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28, a quick ratio of 4.83 and a current ratio of 4.95. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.00 billion, a PE ratio of 8.01 and a beta of 0.04. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $47.57 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $42.05.

Scorpio Tankers (NYSE:STNG - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 30th. The shipping company reported $1.41 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.03 by $0.38. Scorpio Tankers had a return on equity of 8.08% and a net margin of 39.18%.The company had revenue of $222.76 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $219.26 million. During the same period last year, the company earned $3.60 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was down 39.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts predict that Scorpio Tankers Inc. will post 5.29 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Scorpio Tankers Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 29th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, August 13th were issued a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.7%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, August 13th. Scorpio Tankers's payout ratio is presently 21.80%.

About Scorpio Tankers

Scorpio Tankers Inc, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the seaborne transportation of crude oi and refined petroleum products in the shipping markets worldwide. As of March 21, 2024, its fleet consisted of 110 owned and leases financed tanker, including 39 LR2, 57 MR, and 14 Handymax with a weighted average age of approximately 8.1 years.