Torm (NASDAQ:TRMD) Upgraded by Wall Street Zen to “Strong-Buy” Rating

Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Torm (NASDAQ:TRMD) from a buy rating to a strong-buy rating in a report issued on Saturday morning.

Several other analysts have also commented on TRMD. Evercore reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $38.00 price target on shares of Torm in a research report on Wednesday. Pareto Securities cut Torm from a “hold” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 13th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Torm in a research note on Wednesday, July 15th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has issued a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Torm currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $38.00.

Torm Stock Performance

TRMD opened at $32.62 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $3.33 billion, a P/E ratio of 5.37 and a beta of 0.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a current ratio of 2.27 and a quick ratio of 1.20. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $29.40 and its 200 day simple moving average is $29.24. Torm has a 1-year low of $19.30 and a 1-year high of $35.33.

Torm (NASDAQ:TRMD) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 26th. The company reported $3.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.31 by ($0.06). The firm had revenue of $662.80 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $499.01 million. Torm had a return on equity of 27.24% and a net margin of 35.51%.

Torm Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 24th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, September 10th will be given a $2.40 dividend. This is an increase from Torm’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. This represents a $9.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 29.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, September 10th. Torm’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 60.00%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Torm

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in TRMD. Quarry LP purchased a new stake in Torm in the 3rd quarter valued at about $35,000. Optiver Holding B.V. purchased a new position in shares of Torm during the 1st quarter worth about $67,000. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC purchased a new position in shares of Torm during the 2nd quarter worth about $46,000. Wexford Capital LP purchased a new position in shares of Torm during the 3rd quarter worth about $120,000. Finally, Hilton Head Capital Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Torm in the fourth quarter worth approximately $121,000. 73.89% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.