SG Americas Securities LLC Invests $576,000 in Frontline PLC $FRO

SG Americas Securities LLC purchased a new stake in Frontline PLC (NYSE:FRO) during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 16,536 shares of the shipping company’s stock, valued at approximately $576,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of FRO. Voloridge Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in Frontline in the 4th quarter valued at about $15,676,000. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. increased its holdings 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. Barclays PLC raised its position in shares of Frontline by 256.9% in the fourth quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 826,343 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $18,031,000 after buying an additional 594,811 shares in the last quarter. Forest Avenue Capital Management LP acquired a new stake in shares of Frontline in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $11,917,000. Finally, Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ boosted its stake in shares of Frontline by 882.4% in the fourth quarter. Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ now owns 583,166 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $12,725,000 after buying an additional 523,806 shares during the period. 22.70% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Frontline Trading Up 2.1%

FRO opened at $37.63 on Wednesday. The company’s 50 day moving average is $37.25 and its 200-day moving average is $32.82. Frontline PLC has a 1-year low of $17.72 and a 1-year high of $43.10. The company has a current ratio of 2.03, a quick ratio of 2.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.83. The company has a market cap of $8.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.27 and a beta of 0.01.

Frontline (NYSE:FRO) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, May 22nd. The shipping company reported $1.55 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.58 by ($0.03). Frontline had a return on equity of 27.80% and a net margin of 36.70%.The company had revenue of $714.24 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $579.59 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.18 earnings per share. Frontline’s revenue for the quarter was up 66.9% compared to the same quarter last year.

Frontline Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 23rd. Investors of record on Friday, June 12th were given a dividend of $1.55 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 12th. This represents a $6.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 16.5%. This is an increase from Frontline’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.03. Frontline’s dividend payout ratio is presently 152.71%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have commented on FRO shares. Wall Street Zen upgraded Frontline from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, June 27th. Danske downgraded Frontline to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 26th. Weiss Ratings raised Frontline from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a report on Friday, May 22nd. BTIG Research raised their price target on Frontline from $45.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 24th. Finally, Evercore downgraded Frontline from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 21st. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $41.62.

About Frontline

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.