Global Ship Lease (NYSE:GSL) Stock Passes Above 200 Day Moving Average – What’s Next?

Shares of Global Ship Lease, Inc. (NYSE:GSL) passed above its 200-day moving average during trading on Thursday . The stock has a 200-day moving average of $31.46 and traded as high as $36.41. Global Ship Lease shares last traded at $36.0850, with a volume of 296,886 shares trading hands.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

GSL has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target on shares of Global Ship Lease from $33.00 to $39.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, November 10th. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Global Ship Lease in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Finally, Zacks Research downgraded shares of Global Ship Lease from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 23rd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $33.50.

Global Ship Lease Trading Down 0.9%

The firm has a market capitalization of $1.29 billion, a P/E ratio of 3.24 and a beta of 0.93. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $34.91 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $31.46. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34, a current ratio of 2.19 and a quick ratio of 2.14.

Global Ship Lease (NYSE:GSL) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 12th. The shipping company reported $2.62 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.27 by $0.35. Global Ship Lease had a net margin of 53.62% and a return on equity of 23.98%. The firm had revenue of $192.67 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $180.36 million. Global Ship Lease’s revenue was up 10.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts expect that Global Ship Lease, Inc. will post 9.74 EPS for the current year.

Global Ship Lease Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 4th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 21st were issued a dividend of $0.625 per share. This is a boost from Global Ship Lease’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. This represents a $2.50 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 21st. Global Ship Lease’s payout ratio is 22.44%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Global Ship Lease

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Kathmere Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Global Ship Lease by 15.3% during the fourth quarter. Kathmere Capital Management LLC now owns 7,892 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $277,000 after purchasing an additional 1,046 shares in the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC lifted its holdings in Global Ship Lease by 100.1% in the 4th quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 56,817 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $1,991,000 after purchasing an additional 28,425 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its stake in Global Ship Lease by 9.4% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 168,327 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $5,168,000 after purchasing an additional 14,424 shares during the period. Tudor Investment Corp ET AL grew its holdings in Global Ship Lease by 4.4% during the 3rd quarter. Tudor Investment Corp ET AL now owns 217,934 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $6,691,000 after buying an additional 9,187 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Triumph Capital Management purchased a new stake in Global Ship Lease during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Institutional investors own 50.08% of the company’s stock.

About Global Ship Lease

Global Ship Lease (NYSE: GSL) is a Bermuda-based containership charter owner focused on acquiring, owning and leasing modern, fuel-efficient vessels to major liner operators. Founded in 2011 and listed on the New York Stock Exchange the same year, the company’s fleet primarily comprises post-Panamax containerships designed to serve the high-volume Asia–Europe and transpacific shipping lanes. By specializing in long-term charter agreements, Global Ship Lease aims to maintain stable revenue streams and minimize spot-market volatility.

The company’s business model centers on negotiating multi-year time charters with leading global shipping lines.