Frontline (NYSE:FRO) Reaches New 12-Month High – Here’s Why

Frontline PLC (NYSE:FRO) shares reached a new 52-week high during trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $30.98 and last traded at $30.9210, with a volume of 1467613 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $30.92.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently weighed in on FRO. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Frontline in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Clarkson Capital upgraded shares of Frontline from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, January 12th. BTIG Research upped their price objective on Frontline from $30.00 to $35.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 4th. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target on shares of Frontline from $28.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, November 21st. Finally, Evercore boosted their price objective on Frontline from $22.00 to $26.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 28th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $25.87.

Frontline Stock Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $7.52 billion, a PE ratio of 34.48 and a beta of 0.07. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $25.72 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $23.70. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.27, a current ratio of 1.37 and a quick ratio of 1.37.

Frontline (NYSE:FRO) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, November 21st. The shipping company reported $0.19 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.23 by ($0.04). The company had revenue of $257.04 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $265.23 million. Frontline had a return on equity of 8.89% and a net margin of 12.23%.During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.34 earnings per share. Research analysts expect that Frontline PLC will post 1.78 EPS for the current year.

Frontline Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 19th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 12th were issued a dividend of $0.19 per share. This represents a $0.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.2%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, December 12th. Frontline’s dividend payout ratio is presently 77.55%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Frontline

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in FRO. Marshall Wace LLP raised its stake in shares of Frontline by 155.1% in the second quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 1,692,537 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $27,775,000 after purchasing an additional 1,029,034 shares during the last quarter. Voloridge Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Frontline during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $15,676,000. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. lifted its stake in Frontline by 44.0% in the 3rd quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. now owns 2,247,120 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $51,212,000 after buying an additional 686,212 shares in the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC grew its holdings in shares of Frontline by 274.3% during the second quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 877,529 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $14,400,000 after buying an additional 643,100 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Barclays PLC increased its holdings 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 purchasing an additional 594,811 shares during the last quarter. 22.70% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.