SFL (NYSE:SFL) Reaches New 12-Month High – Here’s What Happened

SFL Corporation Ltd. (NYSE:SFL)’s stock price hit a new 52-week high on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $10.91 and last traded at $10.8350, with a volume of 1467573 shares. The stock had previously closed at $10.72.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of SFL from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Saturday, February 14th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of SFL from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research note on Monday, February 2nd. Finally, BTIG Research upped their price objective on SFL from $11.00 to $12.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 11th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $12.00.

SFL Stock Up 1.1%

The company has a market capitalization of $1.58 billion, a PE ratio of -54.18 and a beta of 0.47. The company’s fifty day moving average is $8.72 and its 200-day moving average is $8.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.04, a quick ratio of 0.42 and a current ratio of 0.36.

SFL (NYSE:SFL) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 11th. The shipping company reported ($0.04) EPS for the quarter. The firm had revenue of $175.51 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $168.36 million. SFL had a negative return on equity of 0.30% and a negative net margin of 3.61%.SFL’s revenue was down 23.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.15 EPS.

SFL Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 30th. Investors of record on Thursday, March 12th will be paid a dividend of $0.20 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 12th. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 7.4%. SFL’s payout ratio is -400.00%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On SFL

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. American Century Companies Inc. raised its holdings in SFL by 27.2% during the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 3,297,605 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $27,469,000 after acquiring an additional 704,710 shares during the period. Trexquant Investment LP purchased a new stake in shares of SFL during the fourth quarter worth about $2,280,000. Credit Agricole S A bought a new stake in SFL during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $2,064,000. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. raised its stake in SFL by 7.2% during the 2nd quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 2,806,744 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $23,380,000 after purchasing an additional 188,441 shares during the period. Finally, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lifted its holdings 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 worth $9,839,000 after purchasing an additional 174,072 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 28.59% of the company’s stock.

About SFL

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.