Nordic American Tankers (NYSE:NAT) Hits New 52-Week High – Here’s What Happened

Shares of Nordic American Tankers Limited (NYSE:NAT) hit a new 52-week high during trading on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $7.20 and last traded at $7.0750, with a volume of 712425 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $7.07.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently weighed in on NAT. B. Riley Financial boosted their price objective on Nordic American Tankers from $7.50 to $8.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 28th. B Riley reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Nordic American Tankers in a report on Friday, August 28th. Weiss Ratings lowered Nordic American Tankers from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research report on Friday, August 28th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded Nordic American Tankers from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Saturday, August 29th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $5.33.

Nordic American Tankers Stock Up 2.1%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.78, a current ratio of 3.27 and a quick ratio of 3.05. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $6.43 and its 200-day simple moving average is $5.86. The stock has a market cap of $1.54 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.29 and a beta of -0.54.

Nordic American Tankers (NYSE:NAT) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, August 27th. The shipping company reported $0.32 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.30 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $79.30 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $84.18 million. Nordic American Tankers had a return on equity of 20.58% and a net margin of 47.04%. On average, research analysts anticipate that Nordic American Tankers Limited will post 0.6 earnings per share for the current year.

Nordic American Tankers Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 24th. Investors of record on Thursday, September 10th will be given a dividend of $0.27 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, September 10th. This represents a $1.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 14.9%. This is an increase from Nordic American Tankers’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. Nordic American Tankers’s payout ratio is presently 149.15%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Nordic American Tankers

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio bought a new stake in Nordic American Tankers in the second quarter valued at $30,000. FNY Investment Advisers LLC bought a new position in shares of Nordic American Tankers during the second quarter worth about $32,000. Diversify Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Nordic American Tankers in the 1st quarter worth about $56,000. Diversify Advisory Services LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Nordic American Tankers in the 2nd quarter worth about $66,000. Finally, Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management bought a new stake in Nordic American Tankers in the 1st quarter valued at about $61,000. 44.29% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Nordic American Tankers Company Profile

Nordic American Tankers Limited is a Bermuda-based shipping company specializing in the ownership and operation of Suezmax crude oil tankers. The company’s fleet is employed on the spot and period charter markets, transporting crude oil across major global trade routes. By focusing on commercially flexible employment strategies, Nordic American Tankers seeks to optimize vessel utilization and generate stable income for shareholders.

Founded in 1995 and headquartered in Hamilton, Bermuda, Nordic American Tankers maintains technical and commercial management arrangements through established ship-management partners.