Frontline Target of Unusually High Options Trading (NYSE:FRO)

Frontline PLC (NYSE:FRO) was the recipient of some unusual options trading on Friday. Investors bought 14,816 call options on the company. This represents an increase of approximately 154% compared to the typical daily volume of 5,824 call options.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Frontline

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Frontline by 1.1% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 5,903,785 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $129,966,000 after purchasing an additional 63,432 shares in the last quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership increased its stake in shares of Frontline by 4,659.9% in the first quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 5,783,681 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $202,080,000 after buying an additional 5,662,172 shares during the last quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. raised its holdings in Frontline by 44.0% in the third quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. now owns 2,247,120 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $51,212,000 after acquiring an additional 686,212 shares in the last quarter. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new stake in Frontline in the second quarter valued at $50,846,000. Finally, UBS Group AG boosted its stake in Frontline by 18.2% during the 4th quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 1,411,265 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $30,794,000 after acquiring an additional 217,760 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 22.70% of the company’s stock.

Frontline Stock Up 0.8%

FRO stock traded up $0.35 during trading on Friday, reaching $44.10. The stock had a trading volume of 2,162,622 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,240,852. Frontline has a 1-year low of $20.31 and a 1-year high of $45.29. The company has a current ratio of 2.03, a quick ratio of 2.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.83. The company has a market capitalization of $9.82 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.86 and a beta of 0.02. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $39.25 and a 200 day moving average price of $36.72.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have commented on FRO shares. BTIG Research lifted their target price on shares of Frontline from $45.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 24th. DZ Bank cut shares of Frontline from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Friday, August 21st. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Frontline from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, August 15th. Danske downgraded Frontline from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Friday, August 21st. Finally, Pareto Securities cut Frontline from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $39.46 price target for the company. in a report on Monday, May 25th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $41.62.

About Frontline

Frontline Ltd. (NYSE:FRO) is a leading global shipping company specializing in the seaborne transportation of crude oil and petroleum products. The company’s core business activities encompass the ownership and operation of very large crude carriers (VLCCs), Suezmax tankers and Aframax vessels. Through long-term charters, spot market operations and time charters, Frontline provides flexible shipping solutions that cater to a diverse set of energy producers, refiners and trading houses worldwide.

Frontline’s fleet is geared toward high-capacity, ocean-going tankers capable of carrying large volumes of crude oil over intercontinental distances.