Jefferies Financial Group Has Lowered Expectations for Frontline (NYSE:FRO) Stock Price

Frontline (NYSE:FRO) had its price target cut by equities researchers at Jefferies Financial Group from $30.00 to $26.00 in a note issued to investors on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a “buy” rating on the shipping company’s stock. Jefferies Financial Group’s price objective points to a potential upside of 35.21% from the stock’s previous close.

A number of other equities analysts also recently commented on the stock. Evercore ISI dropped their target price on shares of Frontline from $33.00 to $32.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, July 23rd. StockNews.com raised Frontline to a “sell” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 5th. BTIG Research raised Frontline from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $30.00 target price for the company in a research report on Monday, October 7th. Finally, Fearnley Fonds raised Frontline to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, September 27th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating, four have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $27.26.

Frontline Stock Performance

Shares of Frontline stock opened at $19.23 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 1.38, a quick ratio of 1.38 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.40. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $21.72 and a 200-day moving average price of $23.89. Frontline has a one year low of $18.26 and a one year high of $29.39.

Frontline (NYSE:FRO) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, August 30th. The shipping company reported $0.62 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.65 by ($0.03). Frontline had a return on equity of 19.73% and a net margin of 29.42%. The firm had revenue of $409.72 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $383.88 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.94 earnings per share. Equities analysts forecast that Frontline will post 2.38 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Frontline

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. purchased a new stake in Frontline in the first quarter valued at approximately $224,000. State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System acquired a new stake in shares of Frontline in the first quarter worth $865,000. M&G Plc purchased a new position in shares of Frontline during the first quarter worth $25,074,000. Prevail Innovative Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Frontline during the first quarter valued at $928,000. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in Frontline by 5,319.5% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 5,292,977 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $123,750,000 after purchasing an additional 5,195,312 shares during the period. 22.70% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Frontline

Frontline plc, a shipping company, engages in the seaborne transportation of crude oil and oil products worldwide. It owns and operates oil and product tankers. As of December 31, 2022, the company operated a fleet of 70 vessels. It is also involved in the charter, purchase, and sale of vessels. The company was founded in 1985 and is based in Limassol, Cyprus.