Global Ship Lease (NYSE:GSL) Reaches New 1-Year Low - Here's Why

Global Ship Lease, Inc. (NYSE:GSL - Get Free Report) shares reached a new 52-week low on Thursday . The stock traded as low as $17.73 and last traded at $19.57, with a volume of 1066443 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $18.25.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages recently issued reports on GSL. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Global Ship Lease from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, March 7th. Clarkson Capital raised Global Ship Lease from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, March 19th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $29.00 price objective on shares of Global Ship Lease in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th.

Global Ship Lease Stock Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $721.20 million, a P/E ratio of 2.25 and a beta of 1.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38, a current ratio of 1.64 and a quick ratio of 1.58. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $22.07 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $22.61.

Global Ship Lease (NYSE:GSL - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, March 5th. The shipping company reported $2.55 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.30 by $0.25. Global Ship Lease had a return on equity of 27.88% and a net margin of 46.38%. The business had revenue of $182.43 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $170.71 million. As a group, research analysts expect that Global Ship Lease, Inc. will post 9.74 earnings per share for the current year.

Global Ship Lease Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 6th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 24th were paid a $0.45 dividend. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 8.85%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 24th. Global Ship Lease's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 18.50%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Global Ship Lease

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in GSL. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC increased its stake in shares of Global Ship Lease by 6,856.5% in the 4th quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 1,600 shares of the shipping company's stock valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 1,577 shares during the last quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in Global Ship Lease in the fourth quarter worth $37,000. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC bought a new position in shares of Global Ship Lease during the fourth quarter worth $46,000. R Squared Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Global Ship Lease in the 4th quarter valued at $50,000. Finally, WealthCollab LLC increased its position in shares of Global Ship Lease by 64.1% in the 4th quarter. WealthCollab LLC now owns 2,615 shares of the shipping company's stock valued at $57,000 after buying an additional 1,021 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 50.08% of the company's stock.

About Global Ship Lease

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.