Wall Street Zen Upgrades International Seaways (NYSE:INSW) to Buy

International Seaways (NYSE:INSW) was upgraded by equities research analysts at Wall Street Zen from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note issued on Friday.

Several other research firms also recently issued reports on INSW. Pareto Securities raised International Seaways from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $64.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Tuesday. Zacks Research lowered International Seaways from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, January 5th. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of International Seaways in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $57.33.

International Seaways Stock Up 1.7%

International Seaways stock opened at $57.28 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.83 billion, a PE ratio of 13.05 and a beta of -0.18. International Seaways has a twelve month low of $27.20 and a twelve month high of $58.98. The company has a quick ratio of 1.75, a current ratio of 1.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26. The company has a 50 day moving average of $51.80 and a 200-day moving average of $47.55.

International Seaways (NYSE:INSW) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 6th. The transportation company reported $1.15 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.91 by $0.24. The business had revenue of $196.39 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $180.92 million. International Seaways had a net margin of 28.26% and a return on equity of 10.13%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 12.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.57 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that International Seaways will post 7.77 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Lois K. Zabrocky sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.17, for a total transaction of $110,340.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 180,421 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,953,826.57. This represents a 1.10% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Derek G. Solon sold 3,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $53.71, for a total value of $187,985.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 49,393 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,652,898.03. This represents a 6.62% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 32,500 shares of company stock worth $1,732,605. Insiders own 2.00% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On International Seaways

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in INSW. Arizona State Retirement System lifted its stake in International Seaways by 1.7% in the third quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 12,409 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $572,000 after acquiring an additional 206 shares during the last quarter. Evergreen Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of International Seaways by 2.9% during the 3rd quarter. Evergreen Capital Management LLC now owns 9,832 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $453,000 after purchasing an additional 274 shares during the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. raised its holdings in shares of International Seaways by 18.3% in the 2nd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,872 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $68,000 after purchasing an additional 289 shares during the period. Founders Capital Management lifted its stake in International Seaways by 37.5% in the 4th quarter. Founders Capital Management now owns 1,100 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $53,000 after purchasing an additional 300 shares during the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC grew its holdings in International Seaways by 8.6% during the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 4,367 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $212,000 after purchasing an additional 344 shares during the period. 67.29% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

International Seaways Company Profile

International Seaways, Inc (NYSE: INSW) is an independent tanker company that provides seaborne transportation services to oil companies, commodity traders and national oil companies. The firm’s operations focus on the carriage of crude oil and refined petroleum products, offering both time­ charter and voyage­ charter arrangements. With a modern fleet of very large crude carriers (VLCCs), Suezmax and Aframax tankers, as well as medium range (MR) and Handy product tankers, International Seaways supports global energy supply chains across major trade routes.

Founded in 1997 as Diamond S Shipping, the company completed its initial public offering in the late 1990s and rebranded to International Seaways in September 2018.