BW LPG (NYSE:BWLP) Shares Gap Down – What’s Next?

BW LPG Limited (NYSE:BWLP) gapped down prior to trading on Monday . The stock had previously closed at $21.83, but opened at $20.86. BW LPG shares last traded at $21.27, with a volume of 47,366 shares traded.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Pareto Securities cut shares of BW LPG from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 16th. Weiss Ratings upgraded BW LPG from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 15th. Wall Street Zen raised BW LPG from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, July 20th. Kepler Capital Markets raised BW LPG from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 28th. Finally, Dnb Carnegie upgraded BW LPG from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, May 18th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, BW LPG presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy”.

BW LPG Stock Up 1.5%

The company has a market capitalization of $3.23 billion, a PE ratio of 8.98 and a beta of 1.29. The company’s 50 day moving average is $20.10 and its two-hundred day moving average is $18.14. The company has a quick ratio of 1.29, a current ratio of 1.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36.

BW LPG (NYSE:BWLP) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, May 15th. The company reported $1.08 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. The company had revenue of $838.89 million for the quarter. BW LPG had a net margin of 10.13% and a return on equity of 18.51%.

BW LPG Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 23rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 12th were given a dividend of $6.196 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 12th. This is a positive change from BW LPG’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.57. This represents a $24.78 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 116.0%. BW LPG’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 112.61%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On BW LPG

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in BW LPG by 1.0% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 3,621,504 shares of the company’s stock valued at $47,163,000 after buying an additional 35,066 shares during the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. increased its stake in BW LPG by 12.1% in the 3rd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 2,530,196 shares of the company’s stock worth $36,131,000 after acquiring an additional 272,882 shares during the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of BW LPG by 8.8% during the 2nd quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 1,395,760 shares of the company’s stock worth $16,413,000 after acquiring an additional 113,275 shares in the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company raised its holdings in shares of BW LPG by 41.4% during the 2nd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 560,231 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,613,000 after acquiring an additional 164,057 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership bought a new position in shares of BW LPG during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $9,646,000.

BW LPG Company Profile

BW LPG (NYSE: BWLP) is a pure‐play owner and operator of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) carriers. The company’s core business centers on the maritime transportation of LPG, predominantly propane and butane, under both time‐ and voyage‐charter arrangements. Its fleet comprises pressurized and semi‐refrigerated vessels designed to meet the specific requirements of LPG producers, traders and end‐users around the world.

Headquartered in Singapore, BW LPG serves a global customer base, with commercial offices in key energy hubs including Houston, London, Dubai and Tokyo.