Raymond James Financial Inc. Acquires New Holdings in Global Ship Lease, Inc. (NYSE:GSL)

Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Global Ship Lease, Inc. (NYSE:GSL - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 29,006 shares of the shipping company's stock, valued at approximately $633,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. owned 0.08% of Global Ship Lease at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Donald Smith & CO. Inc. increased its position in Global Ship Lease by 69.0% during the 4th quarter. Donald Smith & CO. Inc. now owns 3,139,470 shares of the shipping company's stock worth $68,535,000 after purchasing an additional 1,281,941 shares in the last quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC increased its stake in shares of Global Ship Lease by 34.9% in the fourth quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 629,750 shares of the shipping company's stock valued at $13,747,000 after buying an additional 162,900 shares during the period. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. boosted its position in Global Ship Lease by 2.7% during the 4th quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 519,913 shares of the shipping company's stock worth $11,350,000 after buying an additional 13,828 shares during the period. Foundry Partners LLC grew its holdings in Global Ship Lease by 5.8% during the 4th quarter. Foundry Partners LLC now owns 503,745 shares of the shipping company's stock worth $10,997,000 after acquiring an additional 27,789 shares during the last quarter. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its stake in shares of Global Ship Lease by 2.3% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 391,053 shares of the shipping company's stock valued at $10,422,000 after acquiring an additional 8,890 shares during the last quarter. 50.08% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have commented on GSL shares. Clarkson Capital raised Global Ship Lease from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, March 19th. StockNews.com downgraded Global Ship Lease from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group restated a "buy" rating and set a $29.00 price target on shares of Global Ship Lease in a report on Wednesday, March 5th.

Global Ship Lease Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE GSL traded up $0.93 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $24.16. The company's stock had a trading volume of 106,567 shares, compared to its average volume of 376,839. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $21.67 and a 200-day moving average price of $22.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38, a current ratio of 1.64 and a quick ratio of 1.58. Global Ship Lease, Inc. has a 12-month low of $17.73 and a 12-month high of $30.32. The stock has a market capitalization of $856.40 million, a P/E ratio of 2.68 and a beta of 1.10.

Global Ship Lease (NYSE:GSL - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, March 5th. The shipping company reported $2.55 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.30 by $0.25. Global Ship Lease had a net margin of 46.38% and a return on equity of 27.88%. The firm had revenue of $182.43 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $170.71 million. As a group, equities analysts predict that Global Ship Lease, Inc. will post 9.74 earnings per share for the current year.

Global Ship Lease Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 3rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 23rd will be paid a $0.525 dividend. This is a positive change from Global Ship Lease's previous quarterly dividend of $0.45. This represents a $2.10 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 8.69%. Global Ship Lease's payout ratio is presently 18.50%.

About Global Ship Lease

Global Ship Lease, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, engages in owning and chartering of containerships under fixed-rate charters to container shipping companies worldwide. As of March 11, 2024, it owned 68 mid-sized and smaller containerships, ranging from 2,207 to 11,040 twenty-foot equivalent unit (TEU), with an aggregate capacity of 375,406 TEU.