Ion Asset Management Ltd. Has $34.88 Million Stake in Navios Maritime Partners L.P. (NYSE:NMM)

Ion Asset Management Ltd. raised its stake in shares of Navios Maritime Partners L.P. (NYSE:NMM - Free Report) by 81.9% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 805,678 shares of the shipping company's stock after buying an additional 362,678 shares during the period. Navios Maritime Partners comprises about 2.0% of Ion Asset Management Ltd.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 9th biggest holding. Ion Asset Management Ltd. owned 2.69% of Navios Maritime Partners worth $34,878,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of NMM. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC boosted its position in Navios Maritime Partners by 38.3% during the fourth quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 160,834 shares of the shipping company's stock valued at $6,963,000 after purchasing an additional 44,576 shares during the last quarter. Natixis lifted its holdings in shares of Navios Maritime Partners by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. Natixis now owns 124,727 shares of the shipping company's stock valued at $5,399,000 after buying an additional 397 shares during the last quarter. Moors & Cabot Inc. increased its holdings in Navios Maritime Partners by 2.6% in the fourth quarter. Moors & Cabot Inc. now owns 76,031 shares of the shipping company's stock worth $3,291,000 after buying an additional 1,901 shares during the last quarter. ING Groep NV grew its position in Navios Maritime Partners by 446.2% in the fourth quarter. ING Groep NV now owns 71,000 shares of the shipping company's stock worth $3,074,000 after acquiring an additional 58,000 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mraz Amerine & Associates Inc. increased its stake in shares of Navios Maritime Partners by 9.4% during the 4th quarter. Mraz Amerine & Associates Inc. now owns 32,694 shares of the shipping company's stock worth $1,415,000 after purchasing an additional 2,798 shares during the last quarter. 62.74% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Navios Maritime Partners Stock Performance

Shares of NMM stock traded up $0.95 during trading on Friday, reaching $35.42. The company had a trading volume of 71,886 shares, compared to its average volume of 173,346. Navios Maritime Partners L.P. has a one year low of $28.37 and a one year high of $65.89. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59, a current ratio of 1.13 and a quick ratio of 1.13. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $36.47 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $43.51. The company has a market capitalization of $1.05 billion, a PE ratio of 2.95 and a beta of 1.31.

Navios Maritime Partners (NYSE:NMM - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 13th. The shipping company reported $2.61 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.54 by ($1.93). The company had revenue of $302.99 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $340.83 million. Navios Maritime Partners had a return on equity of 11.64% and a net margin of 27.53%. Sell-side analysts forecast that Navios Maritime Partners L.P. will post 12.64 earnings per share for the current year.

Navios Maritime Partners Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 14th. Investors of record on Friday, May 9th will be given a dividend of $0.05 per share. This represents a $0.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.56%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 9th. Navios Maritime Partners's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 1.67%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Navios Maritime Partners from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, March 13th.

About Navios Maritime Partners

Navios Maritime Partners L.P. owns and operates dry cargo vessels in Asia, Europe, North America, and Australia. The company offers seaborne transportation services for a range of liquid and dry cargo commodities, including crude oil, refined petroleum, chemicals, iron ore, coal, grain, fertilizer, and containers, as well as charters its vessels under short, medium, and longer-term charters.