Safe Bulkers’ (SB) “Buy” Rating Reaffirmed at Jefferies Financial Group

Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed their buy rating on shares of Safe Bulkers (NYSE:SB) in a research report sent to investors on Thursday morning,Benzinga reports. They currently have a $6.00 target price on the shipping company’s stock.

Separately, StockNews.com lowered Safe Bulkers from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday.

Safe Bulkers Trading Down 0.2 %

Shares of NYSE:SB traded down $0.01 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $4.28. 205,344 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 664,720. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58, a quick ratio of 2.11 and a current ratio of 2.11. Safe Bulkers has a twelve month low of $3.45 and a twelve month high of $6.33. The firm has a market capitalization of $456.98 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 4.77 and a beta of 0.95. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $4.63 and its 200-day moving average price is $5.16.

Safe Bulkers Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 2nd will be paid a $0.05 dividend. This represents a $0.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.67%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 2nd. Safe Bulkers’s dividend payout ratio is currently 22.22%.

Institutional Trading of Safe Bulkers

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Acadian Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Safe Bulkers by 135.2% in the 1st quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 1,898,533 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $9,408,000 after purchasing an additional 1,091,277 shares in the last quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of Safe Bulkers by 3,273.7% during the first quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 165,345 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $821,000 after buying an additional 160,444 shares during the last quarter. Denali Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Safe Bulkers by 316.6% during the second quarter. Denali Advisors LLC now owns 418,300 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $2,435,000 after acquiring an additional 317,900 shares in the last quarter. Banque Cantonale Vaudoise increased its position in shares of Safe Bulkers by 14.4% during the second quarter. Banque Cantonale Vaudoise now owns 16,863 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $98,000 after acquiring an additional 2,129 shares in the last quarter. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets raised its holdings in shares of Safe Bulkers by 12.7% in the 1st quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 65,898 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $327,000 after acquiring an additional 7,409 shares during the last quarter. 21.69% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Safe Bulkers

Safe Bulkers, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, provides marine drybulk transportation services. It owns and operates drybulk vessels for transporting bulk cargoes primarily coal, grain, and iron ore. The company has a fleet of 47 drybulk vessels having an aggregate carrying capacity of 4,719,600 deadweight tons.