Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS Takes $545,000 Position in Frontline PLC $FRO

Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS bought a new position in Frontline PLC (NYSE:FRO) in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 15,620 shares of the shipping company’s stock, valued at approximately $545,000.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Frontline by 1.1% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 5,903,785 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $129,966,000 after acquiring an additional 63,432 shares in the last quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. raised its position in shares of Frontline by 44.0% during the third quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. now owns 2,247,120 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $51,212,000 after purchasing an additional 686,212 shares during the period. UBS Group AG lifted its holdings in shares of Frontline by 18.2% in the 4th quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 1,411,265 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $30,794,000 after purchasing an additional 217,760 shares in the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company lifted its holdings in shares of Frontline by 27.3% in the 2nd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 942,698 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $15,477,000 after purchasing an additional 202,142 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Barclays PLC grew its position in Frontline by 256.9% in the 4th quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 826,343 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $18,031,000 after purchasing an additional 594,811 shares during the period. 22.70% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Frontline Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:FRO opened at $36.53 on Friday. The company’s 50-day moving average is $37.28 and its 200 day moving average is $33.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.83, a quick ratio of 2.03 and a current ratio of 2.03. The company has a market capitalization of $8.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.00 and a beta of 0.01. Frontline PLC has a fifty-two week low of $18.06 and a fifty-two week high of $43.10.

Frontline Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 23rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 12th were given a $1.55 dividend. This represents a $6.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 17.0%. This is an increase from Frontline’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.03. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 12th. Frontline’s payout ratio is presently 152.71%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Pareto Securities downgraded shares of Frontline from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $39.46 price objective on the stock. in a report on Monday, May 25th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Frontline from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Saturday, June 27th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Frontline from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research report on Friday, May 22nd. Danske lowered shares of Frontline to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 26th. Finally, Evercore cut shares of Frontline from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $41.62.

Frontline Company Profile

Frontline Ltd. (NYSE:FRO) is a leading global shipping company specializing in the seaborne transportation of crude oil and petroleum products. The company’s core business activities encompass the ownership and operation of very large crude carriers (VLCCs), Suezmax tankers and Aframax vessels. Through long-term charters, spot market operations and time charters, Frontline provides flexible shipping solutions that cater to a diverse set of energy producers, refiners and trading houses worldwide.

Frontline’s fleet is geared toward high-capacity, ocean-going tankers capable of carrying large volumes of crude oil over intercontinental distances.