Torm (NASDAQ:TRMD) Sees Unusually-High Trading Volume – Should You Buy?

Shares of Torm Plc (NASDAQ:TRMD) saw an uptick in trading volume on Tuesday . 1,690,039 shares were traded during mid-day trading, an increase of 109% from the previous session’s volume of 808,414 shares.The stock last traded at $28.5130 and had previously closed at $30.27.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

TRMD has been the topic of several recent research reports. Wall Street Zen lowered Torm from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, June 13th. Evercore set a $35.00 price objective on Torm in a report on Tuesday, April 21st. Pareto Securities lowered Torm from a “hold” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 13th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Torm in a report on Friday, April 17th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has given a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Torm has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $35.00.

Torm Price Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $2.95 billion, a PE ratio of 8.54 and a beta of 0.08. The business has a 50-day moving average of $30.65 and a 200 day moving average of $26.63. The company has a current ratio of 1.40, a quick ratio of 1.20 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35.

Torm (NASDAQ:TRMD) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 13th. The company reported $1.18 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.33 by ($0.15). Torm had a net margin of 24.45% and a return on equity of 15.81%. The company had revenue of $402.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $297.43 million.

Torm Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 11th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 28th were issued a dividend of $0.70 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, May 28th. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 9.7%. Torm’s payout ratio is 60.00%.

Insider Transactions at Torm

In other Torm news, CEO Jacob Balslev Meldgaard sold 170,133 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $32.30, for a total value of $5,495,295.90. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 348,411 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,253,675.30. This trade represents a 32.81% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.37% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Torm

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership grew its holdings in shares of Torm by 0.7% in the first quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 3,064,258 shares of the company’s stock valued at $86,032,000 after acquiring an additional 21,280 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Torm by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 2,341,185 shares of the company’s stock worth $46,629,000 after acquiring an additional 11,457 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Torm in the fourth quarter worth $24,830,000. Renaissance Technologies LLC boosted its position in Torm by 25.8% in the fourth quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 536,425 shares of the company’s stock worth $10,503,000 after purchasing an additional 110,000 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Brevan Howard Capital Management LP purchased a new position in Torm in the second quarter worth $7,523,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 73.89% of the company’s stock.

About Torm

Torm A/S (NASDAQ: TRMD) is an international shipping company specializing in the transportation of refined petroleum products. The firm owns and operates a modern fleet of product tankers, including both Handysize and MR vessels, which are designed to carry a broad range of clean petroleum cargoes such as gasoline, jet fuel and diesel. Torm’s core business revolves around voyage and time-charter contracts with major oil companies, trading houses and other energy sector clients around the world.

The company’s fleet is deployed on global trade routes, with particular focus on major refining and consumption regions in Europe, North America and Asia.