Vanguard Group Inc. Sells 537,495 Shares of Scorpio Tankers Inc. $STNG

Key Points

• Vanguard trimmed its stake in Scorpio Tankers by 20.1%, selling 537,495 shares and ending the quarter with 2,130,933 shares (about 4.18% ownership) worth roughly $119.4 million.
• Earnings beat and dividend increase: Scorpio Tankers reported $1.62 EPS vs. $1.37 expected and revenue of $252.7M (up 23.8% YoY), and raised its quarterly dividend to $0.45 (annualized $1.80, yield 2.2%, ex-dividend Mar 6).
• The stock is trading near its 52-week high ($80.23 vs. $81.85), has a $4.15 billion market cap and a P/E of 11.35, and carries a consensus analyst rating of "Moderate Buy" with a $79.67 target.

Vanguard Group Inc. lowered its position in Scorpio Tankers Inc. (NYSE:STNG - Free Report) by 20.1% in the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,130,933 shares of the shipping company's stock after selling 537,495 shares during the quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. owned 4.18% of Scorpio Tankers worth $119,439,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of STNG. Marex Group plc acquired a new position in shares of Scorpio Tankers in the 2nd quarter valued at $901,000. Federated Hermes Inc. lifted its position in shares of Scorpio Tankers by 234.1% during the 3rd quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 38,524 shares of the shipping company's stock worth $2,159,000 after buying an additional 26,994 shares during the period. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS acquired a new stake in Scorpio Tankers in the 3rd quarter valued at $2,242,000. Moody Aldrich Partners LLC grew its position in Scorpio Tankers by 84.5% in the third quarter. Moody Aldrich Partners LLC now owns 120,862 shares of the shipping company's stock valued at $6,774,000 after acquiring an additional 55,360 shares during the period. Finally, Private Management Group Inc. raised its stake in Scorpio Tankers by 58.2% during the second quarter. Private Management Group Inc. now owns 253,933 shares of the shipping company's stock worth $9,936,000 after acquiring an additional 93,416 shares in the last quarter. 54.64% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Scorpio Tankers Stock Up 1.0%

Shares of STNG opened at $80.23 on Thursday. The business's fifty day moving average price is $63.07 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $58.69. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.35 and a beta of -0.31. Scorpio Tankers Inc. has a 52 week low of $30.63 and a 52 week high of $81.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19, a quick ratio of 9.23 and a current ratio of 9.33.

Scorpio Tankers (NYSE:STNG - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 12th. The shipping company reported $1.62 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.37 by $0.25. Scorpio Tankers had a net margin of 36.70% and a return on equity of 8.85%. The company had revenue of $252.65 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $238.93 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.63 EPS. The company's revenue was up 23.8% 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 year.

Scorpio Tankers Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 6th will be paid a $0.45 dividend. This is an increase from Scorpio Tankers's previous quarterly dividend of $0.42. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 6th. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.2%. Scorpio Tankers's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 23.76%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on the stock. B. Riley Financial restated a "buy" rating on shares of Scorpio Tankers in a research note on Friday, February 13th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a "buy" rating and set a $83.00 price target on shares of Scorpio Tankers in a report on Friday, February 13th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Scorpio Tankers in a report on Monday, December 29th. BTIG Research raised their price target on Scorpio Tankers from $80.00 to $85.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, February 12th. Finally, Moffett Nathanson raised Scorpio Tankers to a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, January 12th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have assigned a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $79.67.

About Scorpio Tankers

Scorpio Tankers Inc NYSE: STNG is an independent provider of marine transportation services, specializing in the carriage of refined petroleum products. The company’s core operations focus on moving clean petroleum cargoes—such as gasoline, diesel, jet fuel and naphtha—on a global scale. By catering to both spot and time charter markets, Scorpio Tankers enables energy companies, refiners and traders to manage their supply chains with flexibility and reliability.

The company’s fleet is composed of modern, eco-designed product tankers, including medium range (MR) and long range (LR) vessels.

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