Marshall Wace LLP Trims Stake in Golden Ocean Group Limited (NASDAQ:GOGL)

Marshall Wace LLP lessened its position in Golden Ocean Group Limited (NASDAQ:GOGL) by 51.4% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 546,476 shares of the shipping company’s stock after selling 577,402 shares during the quarter. Marshall Wace LLP’s holdings in Golden Ocean Group were worth $4,896,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its holdings in Golden Ocean Group by 31.7% in the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 444,453 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $5,947,000 after purchasing an additional 106,966 shares in the last quarter. Harbour Capital Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Golden Ocean Group by 70.6% in the 4th quarter. Harbour Capital Advisors LLC now owns 41,515 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $378,000 after acquiring an additional 17,185 shares in the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted its position in Golden Ocean Group by 196.5% during the 4th quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 961,367 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $8,614,000 after acquiring an additional 637,103 shares during the period. Dakota Wealth Management purchased a new stake in Golden Ocean Group in the fourth quarter worth about $770,000. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC increased its stake in shares of Golden Ocean Group by 26.7% during the fourth quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 59,951 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $537,000 after purchasing an additional 12,647 shares in the last quarter. 22.00% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, Jefferies Financial Group cut their price target on Golden Ocean Group from $10.00 to $8.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday.

Golden Ocean Group Stock Performance

Shares of GOGL stock opened at $7.74 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $1.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.40 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65, a quick ratio of 1.22 and a current ratio of 1.22. Golden Ocean Group Limited has a one year low of $6.27 and a one year high of $15.77. The company’s 50-day moving average is $8.08 and its 200 day moving average is $9.36.

Golden Ocean Group Cuts Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 21st. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 11th were given a dividend of $0.15 per share. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 7.75%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, March 11th. Golden Ocean Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 53.57%.

About Golden Ocean Group

Golden Ocean Group Limited, a shipping company, owns and operates a fleet of dry bulk vessels worldwide. The company’s dry bulk vessels comprise Newcastlemax, Capesize, and Panamax vessels operating in the spot and time charter markets. It also transports a range of bulk commodities, including ores, coal, grains, and fertilizers.