Safe Bulkers Target of Unusually Large Options Trading (NYSE:SB)

Safe Bulkers, Inc. (NYSE:SB) was the target of unusually large options trading on Tuesday. Investors purchased 3,562 put options on the stock. This is an increase of 247% compared to the typical daily volume of 1,026 put options.

Safe Bulkers Price Performance

NYSE SB opened at $4.73 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $527.92 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.63 and a beta of 1.02. Safe Bulkers has a 52 week low of $2.97 and a 52 week high of $5.15. The company has a fifty day moving average of $4.70 and a two-hundred day moving average of $4.03. The company has a quick ratio of 2.33, a current ratio of 2.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61.

Safe Bulkers (NYSE:SB) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 13th. The shipping company reported $0.25 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.15 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $82.29 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $72.70 million. Safe Bulkers had a return on equity of 9.05% and a net margin of 27.20%. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.29 earnings per share. On average, analysts predict that Safe Bulkers will post 0.87 earnings per share for the current year.

Safe Bulkers Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 19th. Investors of record on Friday, March 1st were paid a $0.05 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 29th. This represents a $0.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.23%. Safe Bulkers’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 32.26%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. American International Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Safe Bulkers by 9.0% in the second quarter. American International Group Inc. now owns 34,299 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $131,000 after buying an additional 2,838 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its position in Safe Bulkers by 1.8% in the first quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 163,279 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $602,000 after acquiring an additional 2,871 shares during the period. Welch Group LLC increased its position in shares of Safe Bulkers by 30.0% during the 4th quarter. Welch Group LLC now owns 13,000 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $51,000 after purchasing an additional 3,000 shares during the last quarter. Ethic Inc. raised its stake in shares of Safe Bulkers by 28.7% in the 1st quarter. Ethic Inc. now owns 13,645 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $50,000 after acquiring an additional 3,041 shares during the period. Finally, Northern Trust Corp raised its position in Safe Bulkers by 0.9% in the second quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 449,291 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $1,465,000 after purchasing an additional 3,991 shares during the period. 21.69% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, Jefferies Financial Group raised Safe Bulkers from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $4.00 to $6.00 in a research report on Tuesday, February 27th.

Safe Bulkers Company Profile

Safe Bulkers, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, provides marine drybulk transportation services. It owns and operates drybulk vessels for transporting bulk cargoes primarily coal, grain, and iron ore. The company has a fleet of 47 drybulk vessels having an aggregate carrying capacity of 4,719,600 deadweight tons.