Safe Bulkers (NYSE:SB) Rating Increased to Buy at DNB Markets

DNB Markets upgraded shares of Safe Bulkers (NYSE:SB) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research note issued to investors on Monday morning, MarketBeat.com reports. DNB Markets currently has $4.20 target price on the shipping company’s stock.

Several other research firms have also recently commented on SB. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Safe Bulkers from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, January 13th. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $6.00 price objective on shares of Safe Bulkers in a research report on Thursday, November 14th.

Safe Bulkers Stock Up 3.3 %

Shares of SB stock opened at $3.57 on Monday. Safe Bulkers has a 12 month low of $3.31 and a 12 month high of $6.33. The company has a quick ratio of 1.34, a current ratio of 1.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52. The firm has a market cap of $380.67 million, a PE ratio of 3.96 and a beta of 0.93. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $3.66 and a 200-day moving average of $4.41.

Safe Bulkers Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 17th. Investors of record on Monday, December 2nd were paid a $0.05 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 2nd. This represents a $0.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.61%. Safe Bulkers’s payout ratio is 22.22%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Safe Bulkers

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of SB. Segall Bryant & Hamill LLC bought a new stake in shares of Safe Bulkers in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $1,480,000. Walleye Capital LLC acquired a new stake in Safe Bulkers in the 3rd quarter valued at $1,109,000. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio bought a new stake in Safe Bulkers in the third quarter valued at $492,000. Barclays PLC raised its stake in Safe Bulkers by 83.4% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 125,238 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $648,000 after acquiring an additional 56,946 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Safe Bulkers by 107.0% during the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 82,417 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $427,000 after acquiring an additional 42,598 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 21.69% of the company’s stock.

About Safe Bulkers

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.