DHT (NYSE:DHT) Shares Gap Up - Should You Buy?

Key Points

• DHT shares opened higher at $24.43 after closing at $23.71, later trading near $24.68. The company has a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating, although the average analyst price target of $21 is below the current price.
• DHT reported strong quarterly results, with EPS of $1.22 beating estimates and revenue rising 174.8% year over year to $254.96 million. BTIG Research also raised its price target from $23 to $28.
• The company increased its quarterly dividend to $1.22 per share, implying a 19.8% annualized yield, but its 165.99% payout ratio may raise sustainability concerns. Insiders sold approximately $11.8 million of stock over the prior three months.

Shares of DHT Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:DHT - Get Free Report) gapped up prior to trading on Thursday. The stock had previously closed at $23.71, but opened at $24.43. DHT shares last traded at $24.6750, with a volume of 581,509 shares.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

DHT has been the topic of several analyst reports. Weiss Ratings upgraded DHT from a "buy (b)" rating to a "buy (b+)" rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 8th. BTIG Research boosted their price target on DHT from $23.00 to $28.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, September 18th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $21.00.

DHT Stock Performance

The stock has a market cap of $3.96 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.37 and a beta of -0.03. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $20.62 and its 200 day simple moving average is $18.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 3.32 and a current ratio of 3.64.

DHT (NYSE:DHT - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The shipping company reported $1.22 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.18 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $254.96 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $247.17 million. DHT had a net margin of 65.52% and a return on equity of 39.40%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 174.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.35 EPS.

DHT Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, August 24th. Investors of record on Monday, August 17th were issued a dividend of $1.22 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 17th. This is a positive change from DHT's previous quarterly dividend of $0.64. This represents a $4.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 19.8%. DHT's dividend payout ratio is presently 165.99%.

Insider Transactions at DHT

In other news, insider Jon Eglin sold 25,000 shares of DHT stock in a transaction on Friday, September 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $21.00, for a total transaction of $525,000.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 274,622 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,767,062. This trade represents a 8.34% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Sophie Rossini sold 33,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, August 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $20.04, for a total value of $661,320.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 78,543 shares in the company, valued at $1,574,001.72. This represents a 29.59% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold a total of 583,803 shares of company stock valued at $11,843,097 over the last three months. 1.60% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of DHT. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership raised its position in shares of DHT by 74.1% during the first quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 4,315,767 shares of the shipping company's stock worth $78,849,000 after purchasing an additional 1,836,892 shares during the period. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund lifted its holdings in shares of DHT by 1,072.1% during the first quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund now owns 1,162,300 shares of the shipping company's stock valued at $21,235,000 after purchasing an additional 1,063,134 shares during the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE boosted its position in shares of DHT by 168.3% in the 1st quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 1,186,289 shares of the shipping company's stock valued at $21,674,000 after purchasing an additional 744,130 shares during the period. Acorn Financial Advisory Services Inc. ADV acquired a new position in shares of DHT in the 1st quarter valued at $13,123,000. Finally, WIT Partners Advisory Pte. Ltd. purchased a new position in DHT in the 1st quarter worth about $5,163,000. Institutional investors own 58.53% of the company's stock.

About DHT

DHT Holdings, Inc NYSE: DHT is a maritime transportation company that owns and operates crude oil tankers. The company primarily focuses on very large crude carriers (VLCCs), which transport substantial volumes of crude oil between major production and refining regions around the world.

DHT provides ocean transportation services through a combination of time charters, voyage charters and pool arrangements. Its vessels serve the international energy industry by moving crude oil from exporting regions to refineries and storage facilities in global markets.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.