Global Ship Lease (NYSE:GSL) Reaches New 1-Year High Following Dividend Announcement

Key Points

• Global Ship Lease shares hit a new 52-week high of $31.97 following the announcement of a dividend increase to $0.5469 per share, representing a yield of 6.8%.
• Wall Street analysts have mixed opinions on the stock, with ratings ranging from "buy" to "hold" and a price target averaging $30.50.
• The company reported earnings per share (EPS) of $2.67 for the last quarter, exceeding expectations, and indicated a strong net margin of 53.09%.

Shares of Global Ship Lease, Inc. (NYSE:GSL - Get Free Report) reached a new 52-week high during trading on Thursday after the company announced a dividend. The company traded as high as $31.97 and last traded at $31.95, with a volume of 291152 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $31.29.

The newly announced dividend which will be paid on Wednesday, October 1st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, September 24th will be given a dividend of $0.5469 per share. This represents a $2.19 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.8%. This is an increase from Global Ship Lease's previous quarterly dividend of $0.53. Global Ship Lease's dividend payout ratio is 19.50%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on GSL. Clarkson Capital cut Global Ship Lease from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $28.00 target price on the stock. in a report on Thursday, May 22nd. Wall Street Zen upgraded Global Ship Lease from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, August 9th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group restated a "buy" rating and set a $33.00 price objective on shares of Global Ship Lease in a report on Tuesday, August 5th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $30.50.

Global Ship Lease Trading Down 1.8%

The company has a fifty day moving average of $29.68 and a 200-day moving average of $25.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37, a current ratio of 2.01 and a quick ratio of 1.94. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.13 billion, a PE ratio of 2.97 and a beta of 1.12.

Global Ship Lease (NYSE:GSL - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 5th. The shipping company reported $2.67 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.15 by $0.52. The company had revenue of $191.86 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $177.98 million. Global Ship Lease had a return on equity of 24.81% and a net margin of 53.09%. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Global Ship Lease, Inc. will post 9.74 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Donald Smith & CO. Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Global Ship Lease by 0.6% in the 2nd quarter. Donald Smith & CO. Inc. now owns 3,238,868 shares of the shipping company's stock valued at $85,215,000 after purchasing an additional 18,783 shares during the last quarter. Kingstone Capital Partners Texas LLC bought a new stake in shares of Global Ship Lease during the 2nd quarter worth about $68,680,000. Acadian Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Global Ship Lease by 7.3% during the 2nd quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 1,305,109 shares of the shipping company's stock valued at $34,314,000 after acquiring an additional 89,258 shares during the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. raised its stake in shares of Global Ship Lease by 5.3% in the 2nd quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 613,287 shares of the shipping company's stock valued at $16,136,000 after acquiring an additional 31,047 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. raised its stake in shares of Global Ship Lease by 1.9% in the 2nd quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 536,747 shares of the shipping company's stock valued at $14,122,000 after acquiring an additional 9,978 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 50.08% of the company's stock.

Global Ship Lease Company Profile

Global Ship Lease, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, engages in owning and chartering of containerships under fixed-rate charters to container shipping companies worldwide. As of March 11, 2024, it owned 68 mid-sized and smaller containerships, ranging from 2,207 to 11,040 twenty-foot equivalent unit (TEU), with an aggregate capacity of 375,406 TEU.