Safe Bulkers (NYSE:SB) Stock Price Passes Above 200-Day Moving Average – Here’s What Happened

Safe Bulkers, Inc (NYSE:SB)’s share price passed above its 200-day moving average during trading on Tuesday . The stock has a 200-day moving average of $6.15 and traded as high as $6.75. Safe Bulkers shares last traded at $6.7250, with a volume of 900,670 shares.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Safe Bulkers from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, June 29th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Safe Bulkers currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $6.00.

Safe Bulkers Stock Performance

The business has a 50-day moving average price of $6.72 and a 200-day moving average price of $6.18. The company has a quick ratio of 1.37, a current ratio of 1.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46. The firm has a market capitalization of $683.60 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.86 and a beta of 0.84.

Safe Bulkers (NYSE:SB) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, June 18th. The shipping company reported $0.18 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.10 by $0.08. Safe Bulkers had a return on equity of 6.45% and a net margin of 18.73%.The firm had revenue of $74.39 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $65.50 million.

Safe Bulkers Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 16th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 30th will be paid a dividend of $0.06 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, June 30th. This is a positive change from Safe Bulkers’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.05. This represents a $0.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.6%. Safe Bulkers’s payout ratio is presently 53.33%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Safe Bulkers

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of SB. Fearnley Asset Management AS purchased a new position in Safe Bulkers in the 4th quarter worth $5,112,000. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. grew its stake in Safe Bulkers by 30.4% during the 4th quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 2,651,114 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $12,778,000 after purchasing an additional 617,711 shares during the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Safe Bulkers in the fourth quarter valued at about $1,571,000. Lazard Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Safe Bulkers in the first quarter worth about $1,625,000. Finally, Sei Investments Co. raised its stake in shares of Safe Bulkers by 692.7% in the first quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 262,615 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $1,662,000 after purchasing an additional 229,486 shares during the last quarter. 21.69% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Safe Bulkers Company Profile

Safe Bulkers Inc (NYSE: SB) is a dry bulk shipping company engaged in the ocean transport of commodities such as iron ore, coal, grain, and fertilizers. The company operates a modern fleet of vessels, including Panamax, Supramax and Kamsarmax bulk carriers, designed to serve a variety of trade routes and cargo types. Safe Bulkers’ fleet is employed under both time charter and voyage charter arrangements, offering flexibility to respond to market demand and optimize vessel utilization.

Founded in 2008, Safe Bulkers began trading its shares on the New York Stock Exchange in the same year, establishing itself as a publicly listed provider of dry bulk transportation services.