Genco Shipping & Trading (NYSE:GNK) Sets New 12-Month High - Still a Buy?

Key Points

• 52-week high: Genco shares hit a new 52-week high, trading around $25.48, even as analysts have recently trimmed ratings and the consensus rating is "Hold" with an average price target of $21.00.
• Dividend hike: The company raised its quarterly dividend to $0.50 (a $2.00 annualized payout), implying a yield of about 7.9%.
• Genco beat the latest quarter's EPS ($0.39 vs. $0.35) and revenue estimates but still reported a negative net margin and ROE; insiders have been net sellers recently while several institutions have materially increased their stakes.

Genco Shipping & Trading Limited (NYSE:GNK - Get Free Report) shares hit a new 52-week high during trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $25.45 and last traded at $25.48, with a volume of 187325 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $23.98.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently commented on the stock. Alliance Global Partners downgraded shares of Genco Shipping & Trading from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 19th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "hold (c-)" rating on shares of Genco Shipping & Trading in a research report on Friday, March 27th. Finally, Zacks Research downgraded shares of Genco Shipping & Trading from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, March 30th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Genco Shipping & Trading currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $21.00.

Genco Shipping & Trading Price Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 1.84, a current ratio of 2.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21. The company has a market capitalization of $1.10 billion, a P/E ratio of -230.21, a P/E/G ratio of 4.89 and a beta of 0.97. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $23.11 and its 200 day simple moving average is $20.30.

Genco Shipping & Trading (NYSE:GNK - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, February 17th. The shipping company reported $0.39 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.35 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $109.92 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $78.52 million. Genco Shipping & Trading had a negative net margin of 1.28% and a negative return on equity of 0.12%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 10.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.29 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Genco Shipping & Trading Limited will post 1.31 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Genco Shipping & Trading Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 18th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, March 11th were given a $0.50 dividend. This is a positive change from Genco Shipping & Trading's previous quarterly dividend of $0.15. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 7.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 11th. Genco Shipping & Trading's payout ratio is presently -1,818.18%.

Insider Transactions at Genco Shipping & Trading

In other news, CAO Joseph Adamo sold 6,340 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, February 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $23.67, for a total value of $150,067.80. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 38,519 shares in the company, valued at approximately $911,744.73. The trade was a 14.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Jesper Christensen sold 18,450 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $23.66, for a total transaction of $436,527.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 98,299 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,325,754.34. The trade was a 15.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last three months, insiders sold 55,824 shares of company stock worth $1,313,949. 2.37% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Genco Shipping & Trading

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of GNK. Millennium Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Genco Shipping & Trading by 100.3% in the fourth quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 543,290 shares of the shipping company's stock worth $10,013,000 after buying an additional 272,094 shares during the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC lifted its stake in shares of Genco Shipping & Trading by 364.8% in the first quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 307,663 shares of the shipping company's stock worth $6,938,000 after buying an additional 241,471 shares during the last quarter. Citigroup Inc. raised its stake in Genco Shipping & Trading by 727.6% during the 3rd quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 215,412 shares of the shipping company's stock valued at $3,834,000 after purchasing an additional 189,383 shares during the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP boosted its holdings in Genco Shipping & Trading by 705.9% in the 3rd quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 133,631 shares of the shipping company's stock valued at $2,379,000 after purchasing an additional 117,049 shares during the period. Finally, Hsbc Holdings PLC acquired a new stake in Genco Shipping & Trading in the 1st quarter worth $2,552,000. 58.62% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Genco Shipping & Trading

Genco Shipping & Trading Limited is a leading global owner and operator of drybulk vessels, providing seaborne transportation services for major commodities such as iron ore, coal, grain and fertilizers. The company's fleet comprises Capesize, Panamax and Supramax vessels, which are chartered to a broad base of international charterers under both spot and period contracts. Genco's focus on modern, fuel-efficient tonnage supports reliable cargo delivery across a variety of trade routes and market conditions.

In addition to vessel ownership and operation, Genco offers ship management, maintenance and technical support services designed to maximize fleet performance and safety.

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