Safe Bulkers (NYSE:SB) Reaches New 1-Year High at $5.28

Safe Bulkers, Inc. (NYSE:SB - Get Free Report) shares hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $5.28 and last traded at $5.28, with a volume of 112608 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $5.19.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on SB shares. Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of Safe Bulkers from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $4.00 to $6.00 in a research report on Tuesday, February 27th. StockNews.com raised shares of Safe Bulkers from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 1st.

Safe Bulkers Price Performance

The stock's 50 day moving average price is $4.92 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $4.22. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63, a current ratio of 2.55 and a quick ratio of 2.55. The firm has a market capitalization of $609.39 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.03 and a beta of 0.99.

Safe Bulkers (NYSE:SB - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, April 30th. The shipping company reported $0.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.21 by ($0.01). Safe Bulkers had a return on equity of 10.29% and a net margin of 27.85%. The company had revenue of $81.67 million for the quarter. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.10 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Safe Bulkers, Inc. will post 0.86 EPS for the current year.

Safe Bulkers Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 30th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 17th will be issued a $0.05 dividend. This represents a $0.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.66%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 16th. Safe Bulkers's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 29.41%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Safe Bulkers

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Safe Bulkers by 63.3% in the 1st quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 459,112 shares of the shipping company's stock worth $2,277,000 after purchasing an additional 177,940 shares during the last quarter. LSV Asset Management acquired a new position in Safe Bulkers during the 4th quarter worth about $401,000. Denali Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Safe Bulkers during the 1st quarter worth about $498,000. Quadrature Capital Ltd acquired a new position in Safe Bulkers during the 4th quarter worth about $385,000. Finally, Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC acquired a new position in Safe Bulkers during the 1st quarter worth about $442,000. Institutional investors own 21.69% of the company's stock.

Safe Bulkers Company Profile

Safe Bulkers, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, provides marine drybulk transportation services. It owns and operates drybulk vessels for transporting bulk cargoes primarily coal, grain, and iron ore. The company has a fleet of 47 drybulk vessels having an aggregate carrying capacity of 4,719,600 deadweight tons.