Navigator Holdings Ltd. $NVGS Shares Purchased by Hodges Capital Management Inc.

Hodges Capital Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Navigator Holdings Ltd. (NYSE:NVGS) by 31.1% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 553,323 shares of the shipping company’s stock after acquiring an additional 131,351 shares during the quarter. Hodges Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Navigator were worth $9,584,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT acquired a new position in Navigator during the fourth quarter worth about $73,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its stake in shares of Navigator by 43.3% in the 4th quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 302,165 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $5,233,000 after buying an additional 91,368 shares during the period. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Navigator in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $432,000. 1492 Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Navigator by 3.3% in the 4th quarter. 1492 Capital Management LLC now owns 170,874 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $2,960,000 after buying an additional 5,427 shares during the period. Finally, Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. grew its stake in shares of Navigator by 30.4% in the 4th quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 2,680 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $46,000 after buying an additional 625 shares during the period. 18.95% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Navigator Stock Performance

Navigator stock opened at $22.54 on Thursday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $21.68 and a 200-day simple moving average of $19.62. Navigator Holdings Ltd. has a 1-year low of $13.90 and a 1-year high of $24.36. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59, a current ratio of 1.16 and a quick ratio of 1.10. The stock has a market cap of $1.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.83, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.96 and a beta of 0.44.

Navigator (NYSE:NVGS) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 6th. The shipping company reported $0.50 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.34 by $0.16. Navigator had a net margin of 18.84% and a return on equity of 7.01%. The firm had revenue of $140.62 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $139.35 million. On average, analysts expect that Navigator Holdings Ltd. will post 1.98 EPS for the current year.

Navigator Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 10th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 20th were issued a $0.07 dividend. This represents a $0.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.2%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, May 20th. Navigator’s dividend payout ratio is currently 17.18%.

Insider Activity at Navigator

In other news, insider Oeyvind Lindeman sold 6,259 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $21.70, for a total value of $135,820.30. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, COO Michael Schroder sold 25,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $23.63, for a total transaction of $590,750.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 5,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $118,150. This represents a 83.33% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Corporate insiders own 0.40% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Navigator from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 20th. Zacks Research cut shares of Navigator from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 12th. Citigroup increased their price target on shares of Navigator from $24.00 to $27.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 12th. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut shares of Navigator from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Sunday, March 15th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $23.33.

About Navigator

Navigator Holdings Ltd. is a global shipping company specializing in the seaborne transportation of liquefied gases. The company’s fleet is purpose-built to carry a range of petrochemical gases, including liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), ethylene, propylene and ammonia. Navigator’s vessels are designed to meet the stringent safety and environmental standards required for handling pressurized and refrigerated gases, offering flexible capacity to customers across the energy and chemical sectors.

Navigator operates one of the largest and most modern fleets of gas carriers in the industry, with vessels ranging from fully pressurized gas carriers to specialized very large ethane carriers (VLECs).