SFL (NYSE:SFL) Downgraded by Wall Street Zen to Sell

SFL (NYSE:SFL) was downgraded by equities research analysts at Wall Street Zen from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note issued on Saturday.

Several other analysts also recently issued reports on the company. BTIG Research upped their price target on SFL from $11.00 to $12.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Weiss Ratings upgraded SFL from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a report on Monday, February 2nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $12.00.

SFL Stock Performance

Shares of SFL opened at $10.31 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $1.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -51.57 and a beta of 0.47. The company’s fifty day moving average is $8.37 and its 200-day moving average is $8.14. The company has a quick ratio of 0.42, a current ratio of 0.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.04. SFL has a 12 month low of $6.73 and a 12 month high of $10.44.

SFL (NYSE:SFL) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 11th. The shipping company reported ($0.04) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. The business had revenue of $175.51 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $168.36 million. SFL had a negative net margin of 3.61% and a negative return on equity of 0.30%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 23.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.15 EPS.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. American Century Companies Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of SFL by 27.2% during the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 3,297,605 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $27,469,000 after buying an additional 704,710 shares during the last quarter. Credit Agricole S A bought a new position in SFL during the third quarter worth $2,064,000. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. raised its stake in SFL by 7.2% during the 2nd quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 2,806,744 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $23,380,000 after purchasing an additional 188,441 shares during the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its stake in SFL by 16.0% during the 4th quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 1,259,801 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $9,839,000 after purchasing an additional 174,072 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sigma Planning Corp boosted its holdings in SFL by 89.1% in the 2nd quarter. Sigma Planning Corp now owns 233,577 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $1,946,000 after purchasing an additional 110,042 shares during the period. 28.59% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

SFL Company Profile

Ship Finance International Limited (NYSE: SFL) is an independent owner of modern, large-size ocean-going vessels that provides finance and leasing services to the global shipping industry. The company’s fleet encompasses a diversified mix of crude oil tankers, product and chemical tankers, liquefied natural gas (LNG) carriers, dry bulk carriers, container vessels and floating production storage and offloading (FPSO) units. By structuring long-term charter agreements and bareboat leases with major oil companies, commodity traders and offshore operators, Ship Finance International seeks to deliver stable cash flows and risk-adjusted returns for its shareholders.

In its core business, Ship Finance International acquires or finances vessels through forward sales agreements and then charters them out under fixed-rate contracts, typically ranging from five to 20 years in duration.