Genco Shipping & Trading (NYSE:GNK) Shares Up 4.6% – Time to Buy?

Genco Shipping & Trading Limited (NYSE:GNK) traded up 4.6% during trading on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $22.93 and last traded at $23.0250. 118,588 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 75% from the average session volume of 473,130 shares. The stock had previously closed at $22.01.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages recently issued reports on GNK. Alliance Global Partners downgraded shares of Genco Shipping & Trading from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 19th. Zacks Research raised Genco Shipping & Trading from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 17th. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Genco Shipping & Trading in a report on Monday, December 29th. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Genco Shipping & Trading from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Sunday, December 14th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has issued a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Genco Shipping & Trading has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $21.00.

Genco Shipping & Trading Trading Up 3.7%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a current ratio of 2.39 and a quick ratio of 1.84. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $21.33 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $19.02. The stock has a market capitalization of $988.78 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -208.04, a PEG ratio of 4.86 and a beta of 1.14.

Genco Shipping & Trading (NYSE:GNK) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 17th. The shipping company reported $0.39 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.35 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $109.92 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $78.52 million. Genco Shipping & Trading had a negative net margin of 1.28% and a negative return on equity of 0.12%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.29 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that Genco Shipping & Trading Limited will post 0.48 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Genco Shipping & Trading Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 18th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, March 11th will be paid a dividend of $0.50 per share. This is a boost from Genco Shipping & Trading’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.15. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 8.8%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, March 11th. Genco Shipping & Trading’s payout ratio is presently -1,818.18%.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Jesper Christensen sold 18,450 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $23.66, for a total transaction of $436,527.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 98,299 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,325,754.34. This trade represents a 15.80% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CFO Peter George Allen sold 13,315 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $23.66, for a total value of $315,032.90. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 66,702 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,578,169.32. This represents a 16.64% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 55,824 shares of company stock worth $1,313,949. 2.08% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Genco Shipping & Trading

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Invesco Ltd. grew its stake in shares of Genco Shipping & Trading by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 125,535 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $2,314,000 after acquiring an additional 935 shares in the last quarter. XTX Topco Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Genco Shipping & Trading in the fourth quarter worth about $1,070,000. Voloridge Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in Genco Shipping & Trading in the fourth quarter valued at about $201,000. Millennium Management LLC boosted its holdings in Genco Shipping & Trading by 100.3% in the fourth quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 543,290 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $10,013,000 after purchasing an additional 272,094 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Boothbay Fund Management LLC grew its stake in Genco Shipping & Trading by 80.8% during the 4th quarter. Boothbay Fund Management LLC now owns 181,765 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $3,350,000 after purchasing an additional 81,235 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 58.62% of the company’s stock.

About Genco Shipping & Trading

Genco Shipping & Trading Limited is a leading global owner and operator of drybulk vessels, providing seaborne transportation services for major commodities such as iron ore, coal, grain and fertilizers. The company’s fleet comprises Capesize, Panamax and Supramax vessels, which are chartered to a broad base of international charterers under both spot and period contracts. Genco’s focus on modern, fuel-efficient tonnage supports reliable cargo delivery across a variety of trade routes and market conditions.

In addition to vessel ownership and operation, Genco offers ship management, maintenance and technical support services designed to maximize fleet performance and safety.