Vision Financial Markets LLC Purchases 31,600 Shares of Frontline PLC $FRO

Vision Financial Markets LLC purchased a new position in Frontline PLC (NYSE:FRO) during the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor purchased 31,600 shares of the shipping company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,557,000. Frontline accounts for approximately 1.1% of Vision Financial Markets LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 17th biggest holding.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Amundi increased its holdings in shares of Frontline by 162.6% in the second quarter. Amundi now owns 847,488 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $29,809,000 after purchasing an additional 524,804 shares during the last quarter. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Frontline in the second quarter worth about $50,846,000. Artemis Investment Management LLP boosted its stake in Frontline by 3.5% during the third quarter. Artemis Investment Management LLP now owns 774,952 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $38,182,000 after buying an additional 26,380 shares during the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE bought a new position in Frontline during the second quarter valued at approximately $30,123,000. Finally, Empowered Funds LLC bought a new position in Frontline during the second quarter valued at approximately $2,950,000. Institutional investors own 22.70% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have weighed in on FRO shares. Nordea Equity Research cut Frontline to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, August 31st. Danske cut Frontline from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Friday, August 21st. BTIG Research upped their price objective on Frontline from $55.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, September 18th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Frontline from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, August 29th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised shares of Frontline from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b+)” rating in a report on Thursday, October 8th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $45.37.

Frontline Price Performance

Shares of NYSE FRO traded up $1.68 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $52.90. 2,608,511 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,291,670. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 1.87 and a quick ratio of 1.87. Frontline PLC has a 1 year low of $20.47 and a 1 year high of $59.75. The company’s 50-day moving average is $49.15 and its two-hundred day moving average is $41.47. The company has a market capitalization of $11.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.93 and a beta of 0.15.

Frontline (NYSE:FRO) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, August 28th. The shipping company reported $2.61 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.74 by ($0.13). Frontline had a return on equity of 44.24% and a net margin of 49.47%. The company had revenue of $943.30 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $758.89 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.36 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 96.5% on a year-over-year basis.

Frontline Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 18th were paid a $2.61 dividend. This represents a $10.44 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 19.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, September 18th. This is a positive change from Frontline’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.55. Frontline’s dividend payout ratio is 156.52%.

Frontline Profile

Frontline plc is a maritime shipping company that owns and operates tankers used to transport crude oil and refined petroleum products worldwide. The company’s fleet includes very large crude carriers (VLCCs), Suezmax tankers, and Aframax and Long Range 2 (LR2) vessels, serving international energy markets.

Frontline’s vessels are employed through a combination of voyage charters, time charters and pool arrangements. Its operations connect major oil-producing regions with refineries and consuming markets across the Atlantic, Pacific and other global trade routes.

Founded in 1985, Frontline is incorporated in Bermuda and has corporate operations based in Limassol, Cyprus.