Fmr LLC Has $103.19 Million Position in Frontline plc (NYSE:FRO)

Fmr LLC reduced its stake in shares of Frontline plc (NYSE:FRO) by 13.9% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 4,516,011 shares of the shipping company’s stock after selling 731,922 shares during the period. Fmr LLC’s holdings in Frontline were worth $103,191,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Hsbc Holdings PLC boosted its position in shares of Frontline by 7.7% during the 2nd quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 1,932,842 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $50,683,000 after purchasing an additional 138,011 shares in the last quarter. Forest Avenue Capital Management LP lifted its position in shares of Frontline by 12.7% during the 2nd quarter. Forest Avenue Capital Management LP now owns 1,429,909 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $36,834,000 after buying an additional 161,518 shares in the last quarter. M&G PLC boosted its position in Frontline by 27.2% in the third quarter. M&G PLC now owns 1,110,763 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $25,164,000 after purchasing an additional 237,446 shares during the last quarter. Smead Capital Management Inc. grew its position in Frontline by 5.1% during the third quarter. Smead Capital Management Inc. now owns 670,581 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $15,188,000 after buying an additional 32,531 shares during the period. Finally, The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company grew its position in shares of Frontline by 1,326.2% during the 3rd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 527,470 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $12,053,000 after acquiring an additional 490,486 shares during the period. 22.70% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Frontline Stock Down 5.4 %

Shares of FRO opened at $16.18 on Thursday. Frontline plc has a 1 year low of $15.54 and a 1 year high of $29.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.44, a current ratio of 1.43 and a quick ratio of 1.38. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $20.67 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $23.25. The firm has a market cap of $3.60 billion and a P/E ratio of 6.98.

Frontline (NYSE:FRO) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 27th. The shipping company reported $0.34 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.39 by ($0.05). Frontline had a net margin of 25.64% and a return on equity of 19.25%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.36 earnings per share. On average, analysts forecast that Frontline plc will post 1.83 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Frontline Cuts Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, December 11th will be issued a $0.34 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, December 11th. This represents a $1.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 8.41%. Frontline’s dividend payout ratio is currently 55.51%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on FRO. StockNews.com upgraded Frontline to a “sell” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 5th. Jefferies Financial Group restated a “buy” rating and issued a $26.00 price objective on shares of Frontline in a research report on Wednesday, November 27th. BTIG Research raised shares of Frontline from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $30.00 price target on the stock in a report on Monday, October 7th. Finally, Fearnley Fonds upgraded Frontline to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, September 27th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating, four have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $27.26.

About Frontline

Frontline plc, a shipping company, engages in the seaborne transportation of crude oil and oil products worldwide. It owns and operates oil and product tankers. As of December 31, 2022, the company operated a fleet of 70 vessels. It is also involved in the charter, purchase, and sale of vessels. The company was founded in 1985 and is based in Limassol, Cyprus.