Navigator Holdings Ltd. (NYSE:NVGS) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Buy” by Analysts

Navigator Holdings Ltd. (NYSE:NVGS) has earned a consensus rating of “Buy” from the five analysts that are presently covering the company, Marketbeat.com reports. Five analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating. The average twelve-month price objective among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $21.60.

Separately, Jefferies Financial Group restated a “buy” rating and set a $20.00 price objective on shares of Navigator in a report on Wednesday, March 12th.

Navigator Trading Down 0.5 %

Shares of NVGS opened at $13.93 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $1.02 billion, a PE ratio of 12.33 and a beta of 1.39. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $15.88 and a two-hundred day moving average of $15.82. Navigator has a fifty-two week low of $13.47 and a fifty-two week high of $18.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45, a quick ratio of 0.71 and a current ratio of 0.75.

Navigator (NYSE:NVGS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, March 12th. The shipping company reported $0.38 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.37 by $0.01. Navigator had a net margin of 14.48% and a return on equity of 7.40%. The company had revenue of $144.03 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $120.87 million. As a group, analysts forecast that Navigator will post 1.25 EPS for the current year.

Navigator Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 3rd. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 24th will be given a $0.05 dividend. This represents a $0.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.44%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 24th. Navigator’s payout ratio is currently 16.67%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Navigator

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. R Squared Ltd acquired a new stake in Navigator in the 4th quarter valued at $31,000. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Navigator in the fourth quarter worth about $38,000. Quarry LP grew its stake in shares of Navigator by 61.0% in the third quarter. Quarry LP now owns 4,383 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $70,000 after buying an additional 1,661 shares in the last quarter. Millburn Ridgefield Corp purchased a new stake in shares of Navigator during the 3rd quarter valued at about $92,000. Finally, LPL Financial LLC lifted its position in Navigator by 18.5% during the 4th quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 12,638 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $194,000 after acquiring an additional 1,976 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 18.95% of the company’s stock.

About Navigator

Navigator Holdings Ltd. engages in owning and operating a fleet of liquefied gas carriers worldwide. It provides international and regional seaborne transportation services of petrochemical gases, liquefied petroleum gases, and ammonia for energy companies, industrial users, and commodity traders. The company also offers ship shore infrastructure and consultancy services.