Safe Bulkers (NYSE:SB) Reaches New 52-Week High – What’s Next?

Safe Bulkers, Inc (NYSE:SB)’s stock price hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $8.87 and last traded at $8.7550, with a volume of 166718 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $8.63.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Safe Bulkers from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, August 1st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Safe Bulkers presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $6.00.

Safe Bulkers Trading Up 1.2%

The company has a quick ratio of 1.00, a current ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $7.44 and its 200-day moving average is $6.83. The company has a market cap of $889.49 million, a PE ratio of 11.19 and a beta of 0.84.

Safe Bulkers (NYSE:SB) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, July 28th. The shipping company reported $0.28 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.22 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $87.47 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $77.50 million. Safe Bulkers had a net margin of 28.29% and a return on equity of 9.63%.

Safe Bulkers Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, August 26th. Investors of record on Thursday, August 13th were paid a dividend of $0.075 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, August 13th. This represents a $0.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.4%. This is a boost from Safe Bulkers’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.06. Safe Bulkers’s dividend payout ratio is presently 38.46%.

Institutional Trading of Safe Bulkers

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. California State Teachers Retirement System boosted its holdings in Safe Bulkers by 63.4% during the 2nd quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 4,543 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 1,762 shares during the period. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. increased its stake in Safe Bulkers by 77.7% in the first quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 4,917 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 2,150 shares during the period. Tidal Investments LLC lifted its position in shares of Safe Bulkers by 5.9% during the second quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 43,299 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $156,000 after purchasing an additional 2,423 shares during the last quarter. DGS Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Safe Bulkers by 17.3% during the first quarter. DGS Capital Management LLC now owns 20,918 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $132,000 after purchasing an additional 3,079 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Safe Bulkers by 0.6% during the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 765,593 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $3,399,000 after purchasing an additional 4,300 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 21.69% of the company’s stock.

About Safe Bulkers

Safe Bulkers Inc (NYSE: SB) is a dry bulk shipping company engaged in the ocean transport of commodities such as iron ore, coal, grain, and fertilizers. The company operates a modern fleet of vessels, including Panamax, Supramax and Kamsarmax bulk carriers, designed to serve a variety of trade routes and cargo types. Safe Bulkers’ fleet is employed under both time charter and voyage charter arrangements, offering flexibility to respond to market demand and optimize vessel utilization.

Founded in 2008, Safe Bulkers began trading its shares on the New York Stock Exchange in the same year, establishing itself as a publicly listed provider of dry bulk transportation services.