Safe Bulkers (NYSE:SB) Earns "Buy" Rating from Jefferies Financial Group

Jefferies Financial Group restated their buy rating on shares of Safe Bulkers (NYSE:SB - Free Report) in a research report released on Tuesday morning,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a $5.00 price objective on the shipping company's stock.

Several other research firms have also weighed in on SB. Wall Street Zen lowered Safe Bulkers from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, January 27th. Loop Capital set a $4.20 price target on Safe Bulkers in a report on Monday, January 27th. Finally, DNB Markets upgraded Safe Bulkers from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $4.20 price target on the stock in a report on Monday, January 27th.

Safe Bulkers Price Performance

Shares of SB traded up $0.04 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $3.67. 379,667 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 598,446. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $3.50 and a two-hundred day moving average of $3.66. Safe Bulkers has a 52-week low of $3.02 and a 52-week high of $6.33. The company has a market cap of $385.92 million, a PE ratio of 4.42 and a beta of 1.17. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58, a quick ratio of 1.34 and a current ratio of 1.91.

Safe Bulkers (NYSE:SB - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, May 19th. The shipping company reported $0.05 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.03 by $0.02. Safe Bulkers had a return on equity of 10.04% and a net margin of 31.65%. The company had revenue of $64.35 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $57.92 million. On average, equities analysts predict that Safe Bulkers will post 0.62 earnings per share for the current year.

Safe Bulkers Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 6th will be given a $0.05 dividend. This represents a $0.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.46%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 6th. Safe Bulkers's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 29.85%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Safe Bulkers

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Graham Capital Management L.P. bought a new position in Safe Bulkers in the 4th quarter valued at $49,000. Aigen Investment Management LP bought a new position in Safe Bulkers in the 1st quarter valued at $49,000. Foster Group Inc. bought a new position in Safe Bulkers in the 1st quarter valued at $57,000. ProShare Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Safe Bulkers by 49.0% during the 4th quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 17,008 shares of the shipping company's stock worth $61,000 after buying an additional 5,596 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mraz Amerine & Associates Inc. grew its position in shares of Safe Bulkers by 23.6% during the 1st quarter. Mraz Amerine & Associates Inc. now owns 16,500 shares of the shipping company's stock worth $62,000 after buying an additional 3,155 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 21.69% of the company's stock.

About Safe Bulkers

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.