Los Angeles Capital Management LLC Invests $399,000 in Navigator Holdings Ltd. $NVGS

Los Angeles Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Navigator Holdings Ltd. (NYSE:NVGS) during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund purchased 28,185 shares of the shipping company’s stock, valued at approximately $399,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in NVGS. Madison Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in Navigator in the first quarter valued at approximately $133,000. Corton Capital Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Navigator during the second quarter worth $153,000. Mraz Amerine & Associates Inc. bought a new position in shares of Navigator in the 2nd quarter valued at $166,000. Quarry LP acquired a new stake in shares of Navigator during the 1st quarter valued at $194,000. Finally, XTX Topco Ltd bought a new stake in Navigator during the 1st quarter worth $199,000. 18.95% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have commented on the company. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Navigator in a research report on Thursday. Wall Street Zen raised Navigator from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, November 8th. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $19.00 target price on shares of Navigator in a research report on Wednesday, November 5th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft initiated coverage on shares of Navigator in a report on Thursday, September 25th. They set a “buy” rating and a $24.00 target price on the stock. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $21.50.

Navigator Price Performance

Shares of NYSE NVGS opened at $17.65 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $1.22 billion, a PE ratio of 13.90 and a beta of 0.57. The company has a quick ratio of 1.53, a current ratio of 1.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70. Navigator Holdings Ltd. has a twelve month low of $10.55 and a twelve month high of $17.87. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $16.07 and a 200 day simple moving average of $15.35.

Navigator (NYSE:NVGS) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, November 4th. The shipping company reported $0.36 EPS for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.36. Navigator had a net margin of 15.57% and a return on equity of 6.56%. The business had revenue of $153.09 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $133.84 million. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Navigator Holdings Ltd. will post 1.25 EPS for the current year.

Navigator Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 16th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, November 25th will be issued a $0.07 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, November 25th. This is an increase from Navigator’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.05. This represents a $0.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.6%. Navigator’s dividend payout ratio is presently 18.54%.

Navigator Company Profile

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.