BW LPG (NYSE:BWLP) Shares Gap Down – Time to Sell?

BW LPG Limited (NYSE:BWLP) shares gapped down prior to trading on Tuesday. The stock had previously closed at $22.21, but opened at $20.85. BW LPG shares last traded at $21.4690, with a volume of 138,306 shares trading hands.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have commented on BWLP shares. Pareto Securities upgraded shares of BW LPG from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 10th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of BW LPG from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, August 8th. Clarkson Capital upgraded shares of BW LPG from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 20th. Finally, Weiss Ratings cut shares of BW LPG from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy”.

BW LPG Stock Up 1.9%

The company has a current ratio of 1.44, a quick ratio of 1.18 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $24.73 and a 200-day moving average of $20.60. The firm has a market cap of $3.33 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.49 and a beta of 1.05.

BW LPG (NYSE:BWLP) last posted its earnings results on Saturday, August 29th. The company reported $0.79 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.17 by ($0.38). The company had revenue of $1.01 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $318.01 million. BW LPG had a net margin of 12.64% and a return on equity of 22.48%.

BW LPG Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 16th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 8th were given a NOK 8.89 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, September 8th. This represents a $35.57 annualized dividend and a yield of 161.5%. This is a boost from BW LPG’s previous quarterly dividend of NOK 6.20. BW LPG’s payout ratio is 129.25%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On BW LPG

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Oceanic Investment Management LTD bought a new stake in BW LPG during the 3rd quarter valued at $921,000. Russell Investments Group Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of BW LPG by 570.9% during the third quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 48,069 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,206,000 after purchasing an additional 40,904 shares during the period. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. bought a new stake in shares of BW LPG during the third quarter valued at about $244,000. State of Wyoming bought a new stake in shares of BW LPG during the third quarter valued at about $99,000. Finally, Engineers Gate Manager LP bought a new stake in shares of BW LPG during the second quarter valued at about $448,000.

About BW LPG

BW LPG Limited is a Singapore-based owner and operator of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) carriers. The company transports LPG by sea, connecting producers with customers and markets around the world. Its fleet includes very large gas carriers and other LPG vessels designed to carry large volumes of gas. BW LPG also provides LPG distribution services in India, extending its business beyond maritime transportation into the downstream supply chain.