Navigator Holdings Ltd. (NYSE:NVGS) Receives Average Recommendation of "Buy" from Analysts

Navigator Holdings Ltd. (NYSE:NVGS - Get Free Report) has received an average rating of "Buy" from the five analysts that are presently covering the company, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Five analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating. The average twelve-month price objective among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $21.60.

A number of brokerages have issued reports on NVGS. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Navigator from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 13th. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $20.00 price target on shares of Navigator in a research note on Wednesday, March 12th.

Navigator Trading Down 0.0%

NYSE:NVGS traded down $0.01 on Friday, reaching $14.62. 509,135 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 240,687. The company has a quick ratio of 1.03, a current ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.42 and a beta of 0.79. The business has a fifty day moving average of $13.63 and a 200-day moving average of $14.56. Navigator has a 52-week low of $10.55 and a 52-week high of $18.18.

Navigator (NYSE:NVGS - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 14th. The shipping company reported $0.36 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.30 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $151.41 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $128.26 million. Navigator had a net margin of 15.42% and a return on equity of 7.83%. As a group, analysts expect that Navigator will post 1.25 earnings per share for the current year.

Navigator Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 17th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 29th were paid a dividend of $0.05 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, May 29th. This represents a $0.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.37%. Navigator's payout ratio is 15.63%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Navigator

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Jane Street Group LLC increased its stake in Navigator by 674.7% in the first quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 85,843 shares of the shipping company's stock valued at $1,143,000 after purchasing an additional 74,762 shares during the last quarter. SCS Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Navigator in the first quarter valued at approximately $1,250,000. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its stake in Navigator by 18.0% in the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 50,885 shares of the shipping company's stock valued at $677,000 after purchasing an additional 7,777 shares during the last quarter. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd purchased a new position in Navigator in the first quarter valued at approximately $818,000. Finally, Petrus Trust Company LTA increased its stake in Navigator by 96.8% in the first quarter. Petrus Trust Company LTA now owns 90,002 shares of the shipping company's stock valued at $1,198,000 after purchasing an additional 44,270 shares during the last quarter. 18.95% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Navigator

Navigator Holdings Ltd. engages in owning and operating a fleet of liquefied gas carriers worldwide. It provides international and regional seaborne transportation services of petrochemical gases, liquefied petroleum gases, and ammonia for energy companies, industrial users, and commodity traders. The company also offers ship shore infrastructure and consultancy services.