UBS Group AG Sells 50,368 Shares of SFL Corporation Ltd. $SFL

UBS Group AG lessened its position in shares of SFL Corporation Ltd. (NYSE:SFL) by 11.0% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 406,645 shares of the shipping company’s stock after selling 50,368 shares during the period. UBS Group AG owned 0.28% of SFL worth $3,176,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Advisors Capital Management LLC increased its stake in SFL by 3.3% in the fourth quarter. Advisors Capital Management LLC now owns 519,570 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $4,058,000 after purchasing an additional 16,610 shares in the last quarter. Evergreen Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in SFL in the fourth quarter valued at $83,000. Signaturefd LLC increased its stake in SFL by 30.5% in the fourth quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 6,008 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $47,000 after purchasing an additional 1,405 shares in the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC increased its stake in SFL by 6.4% in the fourth quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 30,227 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $236,000 after purchasing an additional 1,810 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Maridea Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in SFL in the fourth quarter valued at $171,000. 28.59% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

SFL Trading Up 0.0%

SFL opened at $12.28 on Monday. The company has a market cap of $1.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 51.19 and a beta of 0.42. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $11.19 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $9.62. SFL Corporation Ltd. has a 1-year low of $6.73 and a 1-year high of $12.94. The company has a current ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 0.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.84.

SFL (NYSE:SFL) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, May 12th. The shipping company reported $0.20 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.07 by $0.13. The company had revenue of $174.48 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $170.77 million. SFL had a net margin of 4.37% and a return on equity of 0.26%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 6.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted ($0.24) earnings per share.

SFL Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 22nd. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 27th will be given a dividend of $0.22 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, May 27th. This is a boost from SFL’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.20. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 7.2%. SFL’s payout ratio is presently 333.33%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on SFL shares. Weiss Ratings raised shares of SFL from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research note on Friday, May 15th. BTIG Research lifted their price target on shares of SFL from $12.00 to $14.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 12th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised shares of SFL from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Sunday, May 3rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, SFL has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $14.00.

SFL Profile

Ship Finance International Limited (NYSE: SFL) is an independent owner of modern, large-size ocean-going vessels that provides finance and leasing services to the global shipping industry. The company’s fleet encompasses a diversified mix of crude oil tankers, product and chemical tankers, liquefied natural gas (LNG) carriers, dry bulk carriers, container vessels and floating production storage and offloading (FPSO) units. By structuring long-term charter agreements and bareboat leases with major oil companies, commodity traders and offshore operators, Ship Finance International seeks to deliver stable cash flows and risk-adjusted returns for its shareholders.

In its core business, Ship Finance International acquires or finances vessels through forward sales agreements and then charters them out under fixed-rate contracts, typically ranging from five to 20 years in duration.