Quantum Portfolio Management LLC Takes Position in Frontline PLC $FRO

Quantum Portfolio Management LLC acquired a new position in Frontline PLC (NYSE:FRO) in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 18,769 shares of the shipping company’s stock, valued at approximately $654,000.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in Frontline by 1.1% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 5,903,785 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $129,966,000 after acquiring an additional 63,432 shares during the last quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. increased its stake in shares of Frontline by 44.0% in the third quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. now owns 2,247,120 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $51,212,000 after purchasing an additional 686,212 shares during the period. UBS Group AG increased its stake in shares of Frontline by 18.2% in the fourth quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 1,411,265 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $30,794,000 after purchasing an additional 217,760 shares during the period. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company lifted its position in shares of Frontline by 27.3% during the 2nd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 942,698 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $15,477,000 after purchasing an additional 202,142 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Barclays PLC lifted its position in shares of Frontline by 256.9% during the 4th quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 826,343 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $18,031,000 after purchasing an additional 594,811 shares during the last quarter. 22.70% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have issued reports on FRO shares. Weiss Ratings raised Frontline from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a report on Friday, May 22nd. Evercore lowered Frontline from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 21st. Pareto Securities cut Frontline from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $39.46 price objective for the company. in a research report on Monday, May 25th. BTIG Research raised their price objective on shares of Frontline from $45.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 24th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised shares of Frontline from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, June 27th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $41.62.

Frontline Trading Up 1.9%

Shares of FRO opened at $38.38 on Thursday. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $37.30 and its 200 day moving average price is $32.94. The company has a quick ratio of 2.03, a current ratio of 2.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.83. The firm has a market capitalization of $8.54 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.45 and a beta of 0.01. Frontline PLC has a 12-month low of $17.72 and a 12-month high of $43.10.

Frontline (NYSE:FRO) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, May 22nd. The shipping company reported $1.55 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.58 by ($0.03). The firm had revenue of $714.24 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $579.59 million. Frontline had a return on equity of 27.80% and a net margin of 36.70%.Frontline’s revenue for the quarter was up 66.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.18 EPS.

Frontline Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 23rd. Investors of record on Friday, June 12th were given a $1.55 dividend. This represents a $6.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 16.2%. This is an increase from Frontline’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.03. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 12th. Frontline’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 152.71%.

Frontline Company Profile

Frontline Ltd. (NYSE:FRO) is a leading global shipping company specializing in the seaborne transportation of crude oil and petroleum products. The company’s core business activities encompass the ownership and operation of very large crude carriers (VLCCs), Suezmax tankers and Aframax vessels. Through long-term charters, spot market operations and time charters, Frontline provides flexible shipping solutions that cater to a diverse set of energy producers, refiners and trading houses worldwide.

Frontline’s fleet is geared toward high-capacity, ocean-going tankers capable of carrying large volumes of crude oil over intercontinental distances.