Donald Smith & CO. Inc. Decreases Stock Position in Global Ship Lease, Inc. $GSL

Key Points

• Donald Smith & Co. Inc. cut its stake in Global Ship Lease by 34.4% in the fourth quarter, selling more than 1.09 million shares and leaving it with 2.09 million shares worth about $73.2 million.
• Global Ship Lease recently reported strong quarterly results, posting EPS of $2.56 versus the $2.40 consensus and revenue of $198.08 million, both above expectations.
• The company paid a quarterly dividend of $0.625 per share, equal to an annualized yield of 6.6%, while analysts currently rate the stock a Moderate Buy with a consensus price target of $46.50.

Donald Smith & CO. Inc. lessened its position in Global Ship Lease, Inc. (NYSE:GSL - Free Report) by 34.4% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 2,088,499 shares of the shipping company's stock after selling 1,096,344 shares during the quarter. Donald Smith & CO. Inc. owned about 5.84% of Global Ship Lease worth $73,181,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. SG Americas Securities LLC lifted its position in shares of Global Ship Lease by 100.1% in the fourth quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 56,817 shares of the shipping company's stock valued at $1,991,000 after acquiring an additional 28,425 shares in the last quarter. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D purchased a new position in shares of Global Ship Lease in the third quarter valued at approximately $456,000. Royal Palms Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Global Ship Lease in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $3,665,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its position in shares of Global Ship Lease by 9.4% in the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 168,327 shares of the shipping company's stock valued at $5,168,000 after acquiring an additional 14,424 shares in the last quarter. Finally, WINTON GROUP Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Global Ship Lease in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $949,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 50.08% of the company's stock.

Global Ship Lease Price Performance

NYSE:GSL opened at $38.16 on Thursday. Global Ship Lease, Inc. has a one year low of $25.30 and a one year high of $42.70. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a quick ratio of 2.21 and a current ratio of 2.26. The stock has a market cap of $1.37 billion, a PE ratio of 3.62 and a beta of 0.92. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $39.04 and a 200 day moving average price of $37.54.

Global Ship Lease (NYSE:GSL - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Friday, May 22nd. The shipping company reported $2.56 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.40 by $0.16. The company had revenue of $198.08 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $182.87 million. Global Ship Lease had a return on equity of 21.11% and a net margin of 50.01%.The company's revenue for the quarter was up 3.7% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts expect that Global Ship Lease, Inc. will post 9.5 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Global Ship Lease Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 3rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 22nd were paid a dividend of $0.625 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 22nd. This represents a $2.50 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.6%. Global Ship Lease's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 23.74%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently commented on GSL. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on Global Ship Lease in a report on Friday, April 24th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $45.00 price target for the company. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Global Ship Lease in a report on Tuesday, April 21st. Zacks Research cut Global Ship Lease from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a report on Wednesday, June 3rd. Wall Street Zen raised Global Ship Lease from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, May 30th. Finally, Fearnley Fonds raised 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 assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Global Ship Lease presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $46.50.

Insider Transactions at Global Ship Lease

In other Global Ship Lease news, insider Georgios Giannopoulos sold 7,692 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $38.51, for a total transaction of $296,218.92. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 7.40% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Global Ship Lease Company 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.

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