Safe Bulkers (NYSE:SB) Given "Buy" Rating at Jefferies Financial Group

Safe Bulkers (NYSE:SB - Get Free Report)'s stock had its "buy" rating restated by stock analysts at Jefferies Financial Group in a research note issued on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. They presently have a $5.00 price objective on the shipping company's stock. Jefferies Financial Group's price objective points to a potential upside of 34.05% from the company's current price.

Several other brokerages have also weighed in on SB. StockNews.com lowered shares of Safe Bulkers from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, January 27th. DNB Markets upgraded shares of Safe Bulkers from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $4.20 target price for the company in a report on Monday, January 27th. Finally, Loop Capital set a $4.20 price target on Safe Bulkers in a report on Monday, January 27th.

Safe Bulkers Price Performance

Shares of SB opened at $3.73 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.91, a quick ratio of 1.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58. The stock's 50 day moving average is $3.50 and its two-hundred day moving average is $3.67. Safe Bulkers has a twelve month low of $3.02 and a twelve month high of $6.33. The firm has a market capitalization of $392.77 million, a PE ratio of 4.49 and a beta of 1.17.

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

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Safe Bulkers

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Ballentine Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Safe Bulkers during the fourth quarter worth approximately $89,000. Empowered Funds LLC boosted its stake in Safe Bulkers by 5.1% in the fourth quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 546,562 shares of the shipping company's stock worth $1,951,000 after purchasing an additional 26,595 shares in the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Safe Bulkers by 10.1% during the fourth quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 70,987 shares of the shipping company's stock worth $253,000 after purchasing an additional 6,534 shares during the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC increased its stake in shares of Safe Bulkers by 19.6% in the fourth quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 25,204 shares of the shipping company's stock valued at $90,000 after buying an additional 4,122 shares in the last quarter. Finally, New York State Common Retirement Fund lifted its position in Safe Bulkers by 15.5% during the 4th quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund now owns 213,359 shares of the shipping company's stock worth $762,000 after buying an additional 28,700 shares in the last quarter. 21.69% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.

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