Navigator Holdings Ltd. (NYSE:NVGS) Given Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Analysts

Shares of Navigator Holdings Ltd. (NYSE:NVGS) have earned an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the five analysts that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold recommendation and four have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year price objective among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $21.50.

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on NVGS shares. Wall Street Zen cut Navigator from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Sunday, January 18th. Pareto Securities started coverage on Navigator in a report on Tuesday, December 9th. They issued a “buy” rating for the company. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Navigator in a report on Monday, December 29th. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $19.00 target price on shares of Navigator in a research note on Wednesday, November 5th. Finally, Zacks Research cut shares of Navigator from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, January 5th.

Navigator Price Performance

NVGS opened at $18.42 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.28 billion, a PE ratio of 12.20, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.39 and a beta of 0.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60, a current ratio of 1.18 and a quick ratio of 1.14. The business’s 50-day moving average is $17.74 and its two-hundred day moving average is $16.65. Navigator has a 1 year low of $10.55 and a 1 year high of $18.83.

Navigator (NYSE:NVGS) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, November 4th. The shipping company reported $0.36 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.36. Navigator had a net margin of 17.85% and a return on equity of 6.83%. The firm had revenue of $153.09 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $133.84 million. Research analysts anticipate that Navigator will post 1.25 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Navigator Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 16th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, November 25th were paid a dividend of $0.07 per share. This represents a $0.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.5%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, November 25th. This is a boost from Navigator’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.05. Navigator’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 18.54%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Navigator

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Geode Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Navigator in the 2nd quarter valued at $5,677,000. Bridgeway Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Navigator during the 3rd quarter valued at about $6,091,000. Ameriprise Financial Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Navigator in the 2nd quarter valued at about $4,773,000. Bank of America Corp DE boosted its stake in shares of Navigator by 143.8% in the second quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 263,369 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $3,727,000 after buying an additional 155,336 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Credit Agricole S A purchased a new position in Navigator during the third quarter valued at approximately $2,054,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 18.95% of the company’s stock.

Navigator Company Profile

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).