Navigator (NYSE:NVGS) Hits New 52-Week High – Should You Buy?

Shares of Navigator Holdings Ltd. (NYSE:NVGS) hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $19.19 and last traded at $18.7650, with a volume of 48360 shares. The stock had previously closed at $18.69.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

NVGS has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Navigator from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Sunday, February 8th. Zacks Research lowered shares of Navigator from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 5th. Pareto Securities initiated coverage on shares of Navigator in a research report on Tuesday, December 9th. They set a “buy” rating for the company. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Navigator in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $19.00 target price on shares of Navigator in a report on Wednesday, November 5th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Navigator has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $21.50.

Navigator Stock Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 1.14, a current ratio of 1.18 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $17.87 and a 200-day moving average of $16.85. The company has a market cap of $1.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.78, a PEG ratio of 1.04 and a beta of 0.40.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Navigator

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in NVGS. Bessemer Group Inc. purchased a new position in Navigator in the second quarter worth $383,000. Hodges Capital Management Inc. increased its holdings in Navigator by 12.7% in the 2nd quarter. Hodges Capital Management Inc. now owns 421,886 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $5,970,000 after buying an additional 47,391 shares during the period. Estabrook Capital Management boosted its holdings in Navigator by 13.7% in the second quarter. Estabrook Capital Management now owns 149,658 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $2,118,000 after purchasing an additional 18,090 shares during the last quarter. Encompass Capital Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Navigator by 7.4% during the second quarter. Encompass Capital Advisors LLC now owns 1,437,201 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $20,336,000 after acquiring an additional 99,326 shares during the period. Finally, Los Angeles Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in Navigator in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $399,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 18.95% of the company’s stock.

About Navigator

Navigator Holdings Ltd. is a global shipping company specializing in the seaborne transportation of liquefied gases. The company’s fleet is purpose-built to carry a range of petrochemical gases, including liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), ethylene, propylene and ammonia. Navigator’s vessels are designed to meet the stringent safety and environmental standards required for handling pressurized and refrigerated gases, offering flexible capacity to customers across the energy and chemical sectors.

Navigator operates one of the largest and most modern fleets of gas carriers in the industry, with vessels ranging from fully pressurized gas carriers to specialized very large ethane carriers (VLECs).