SFL (NYSE:SFL) Share Price Crosses Above 200-Day Moving Average – Here’s Why

SFL Corporation Ltd. (NYSE:SFL)’s share price crossed above its 200-day moving average during trading on Monday . The stock has a 200-day moving average of $9.99 and traded as high as $11.46. SFL shares last traded at $11.42, with a volume of 1,755,736 shares.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently weighed in on SFL shares. BTIG Research upped their price target on shares of SFL from $12.00 to $14.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 12th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of SFL from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, June 6th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised shares of SFL from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research report on Friday, May 15th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $14.00.

SFL Trading Down 2.8%

The business’s 50-day moving average is $11.47 and its two-hundred day moving average is $10.03. The company has a current ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 0.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.84. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.58 billion, a PE ratio of 45.65 and a beta of 0.41.

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

SFL Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 22nd. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, May 27th will be given a $0.22 dividend. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 8.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, May 27th. This is an increase from SFL’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.20. SFL’s dividend payout ratio is currently 366.67%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On SFL

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its position in SFL by 2.9% in the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 8,805,291 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $95,007,000 after buying an additional 244,621 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. boosted its position in SFL by 16.7% in the 3rd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 3,847,616 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $28,973,000 after buying an additional 550,011 shares during the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. boosted its position in SFL by 3.5% in the 3rd quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 2,904,433 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $21,870,000 after buying an additional 97,689 shares during the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its position in SFL by 16.0% in the 4th quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 1,259,801 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $9,839,000 after buying an additional 174,072 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Empowered Funds LLC boosted its position in SFL by 3.9% in the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 685,833 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $7,400,000 after buying an additional 25,820 shares during the last quarter. 28.59% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

SFL Company 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.