DNB Markets Initiates Coverage on Navigator (NYSE:NVGS)

DNB Markets assumed coverage on shares of Navigator (NYSE:NVGS) in a research note published on Thursday morning, MarketBeat.com reports. The brokerage issued a buy rating and a $22.00 price objective on the shipping company’s stock.

Several other equities research analysts have also recently commented on the company. Jefferies Financial Group restated a buy rating and set a $20.00 price target on shares of Navigator in a research note on Thursday, August 15th. StockNews.com cut shares of Navigator from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research note on Saturday, September 7th. Clarkson Capital upgraded Navigator from a neutral rating to a buy rating and set a $20.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Thursday, August 22nd. Finally, Citigroup started coverage on shares of Navigator in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. They issued a buy rating and a $22.00 price target for the company. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus target price of $21.00.

Navigator Trading Up 0.2 %

NVGS opened at $15.66 on Thursday. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $16.25 and its 200-day simple moving average is $16.09. The company has a market cap of $1.15 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.38 and a beta of 1.50. Navigator has a one year low of $13.68 and a one year high of $18.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a current ratio of 1.19.

Navigator (NYSE:NVGS) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 14th. The shipping company reported $0.34 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.32 by $0.02. Navigator had a return on equity of 7.35% and a net margin of 14.76%. The company had revenue of $129.55 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $117.92 million. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Navigator will post 1.38 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Navigator Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 24th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 3rd will be given a $0.05 dividend. This represents a $0.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.28%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 3rd. Navigator’s payout ratio is 17.09%.

Institutional Trading of Navigator

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Point72 Asset Management L.P. purchased a new position in shares of Navigator in the second quarter valued at $38,000. Quarry LP purchased a new position in Navigator in the 2nd quarter valued at about $48,000. Perkins Coie Trust Co acquired a new stake in shares of Navigator during the second quarter valued at about $105,000. Aristides Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Navigator during the first quarter worth about $252,000. Finally, XTX Topco Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Navigator in the second quarter worth about $279,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 18.95% of the company’s stock.

About Navigator

Navigator Holdings Ltd. engages in owning and operating a fleet of liquefied gas carriers worldwide. It provides international and regional seaborne transportation services of petrochemical gases, liquefied petroleum gases, and ammonia for energy companies, industrial users, and commodity traders. The company also offers ship shore infrastructure and consultancy services.