Golden Ocean Group Limited (NASDAQ:GOGL) Short Interest Update

Key Points

• Short interest in Golden Ocean Group rose by 85.4% in July, totaling 10,140,000 shares, indicating a significant increase in bearish sentiment towards the stock.
• Analysts from Jefferies Financial Group and Wall Street Zen have both issued a "hold" rating on the company's stock, with Jefferies decreasing its price target from $10.00 to $8.00.
• In the second quarter, institutional investors increased their positions, with 22.00% of the stock currently owned by these investors, including notable increases from Bank of New York Mellon Corp and Signaturefd LLC.

Golden Ocean Group Limited (NASDAQ:GOGL - Get Free Report) saw a significant growth in short interest in the month of July. As of July 15th, there was short interest totaling 10,140,000 shares, agrowthof85.4% from the June 30th total of 5,470,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 2,570,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 3.9 days. Currently,10.2% of the company's shares are short sold. Currently,10.2% of the company's shares are short sold. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 2,570,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 3.9 days.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Golden Ocean Group

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in GOGL. ABC Arbitrage SA bought a new stake in Golden Ocean Group in the second quarter worth approximately $115,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. grew its position in shares of Golden Ocean Group by 19.0% during the 2nd quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. now owns 9,988 shares of the shipping company's stock worth $73,000 after buying an additional 1,593 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its stake in shares of Golden Ocean Group by 8.5% in the 2nd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 1,399,445 shares of the shipping company's stock valued at $10,244,000 after acquiring an additional 110,219 shares in the last quarter. AdvisorShares Investments LLC acquired a new position in shares of Golden Ocean Group during the 2nd quarter valued at $470,000. Finally, Envestnet Asset Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Golden Ocean Group during the 2nd quarter valued at $231,000. Institutional investors own 22.00% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have weighed in on GOGL. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their target price on shares of Golden Ocean Group from $10.00 to $8.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Wall Street Zen initiated coverage on shares of Golden Ocean Group in a research note on Thursday, May 22nd. They issued a "hold" rating on the stock.

Golden Ocean Group Trading Down 3.4%

GOGL stock traded down $0.30 during trading on Friday, hitting $8.52. The company had a trading volume of 2,613,189 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,212,937. The stock has a market cap of $1.70 billion, a PE ratio of 14.95 and a beta of 1.09. The business has a 50-day moving average of $8.03 and a 200-day moving average of $8.14. The company has a current ratio of 0.81, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66. Golden Ocean Group has a one year low of $6.27 and a one year high of $13.44.

Golden Ocean Group (NASDAQ:GOGL - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 21st. The shipping company reported ($0.19) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.10) by ($0.09). Golden Ocean Group had a return on equity of 5.56% and a net margin of 13.16%. The firm had revenue of $115.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $106.48 million. Research analysts predict that Golden Ocean Group will post 1.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Golden Ocean Group Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 17th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, June 5th were given a $0.05 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, June 5th. This represents a $0.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.3%. Golden Ocean Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 35.09%.

About Golden Ocean Group

Golden Ocean Group Limited, a shipping company, owns and operates a fleet of dry bulk vessels worldwide. The company's dry bulk vessels comprise Newcastlemax, Capesize, and Panamax vessels operating in the spot and time charter markets. It also transports a range of bulk commodities, including ores, coal, grains, and fertilizers.