Torm (NASDAQ:TRMD) Reaches New 1-Year High - Here's What Happened

Key Points

• Torm shares reached a new 52-week high, trading as high as $41.55 after closing at $40.00, despite analysts’ average price target of $38.00 and a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating.
• The company reported quarterly revenue of $662.8 million, well above estimates, but earnings per share of $3.25 narrowly missed the $3.31 consensus forecast.
• Torm raised its quarterly dividend to $2.40, equivalent to $9.60 annually and a 23.4% yield; the payout ratio is 115.49%, while insiders sold more than $1.6 million of stock over the past three months.

Torm Plc (NASDAQ:TRMD - Get Free Report) hit a new 52-week high during trading on Tuesday. The stock traded as high as $41.55 and last traded at $41.05, with a volume of 2354033 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $40.00.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently commented on TRMD shares. Evercore restated an "outperform" rating and issued a $38.00 price objective on shares of Torm in a report on Wednesday, August 26th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Torm from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, September 19th. Finally, Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Torm from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a report on Friday, September 25th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has given a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $38.00.

Torm Stock Performance

The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $33.13 and a 200 day moving average price of $30.83. The company has a current ratio of 2.27, a quick ratio of 1.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. The firm has a market cap of $4.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.76 and a beta of 0.07.

Torm (NASDAQ:TRMD - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, August 26th. The company reported $3.25 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.31 by ($0.06). Torm had a return on equity of 27.24% and a net margin of 35.51%.The company had revenue of $662.80 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $499.01 million.

Torm Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 24th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, September 10th were paid a $2.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, September 10th. This is a boost from Torm's previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. This represents a $9.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 23.4%. Torm's dividend payout ratio is presently 115.49%.

Insider Activity at Torm

In related news, CFO Kim Balle sold 20,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, September 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $39.16, for a total transaction of $783,200.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 23,043 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $902,363.88. The trade was a 46.47% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders sold 42,533 shares of company stock worth $1,643,225 in the last three months. 0.37% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Optiver Holding B.V. acquired a new position in Torm in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $67,000. Hilton Head Capital Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Torm during the fourth quarter valued at $121,000. Savant Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Torm in the 4th quarter valued at $203,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new stake in shares of Torm in the 1st quarter valued at $228,000. Finally, The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company bought a new stake in shares of Torm in the 1st quarter worth about $252,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 73.89% of the company's stock.

About Torm

TORM plc is a Denmark-based international shipping company that owns and operates product tankers. The company transports refined petroleum products, including gasoline, diesel, jet fuel and naphtha, as well as other clean petroleum and chemical products for customers worldwide.

TORM manages a fleet of tankers across several size classes, including medium-range and larger vessels. Its activities cover commercial and technical vessel management, chartering, and the transportation of liquid cargoes between major production, refining and consumption markets.

Founded in 1889, TORM has its roots in Denmark and has developed into a global product tanker operator serving routes across the Atlantic, Pacific, Middle East and Asia-Pacific regions.

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.