Nordic American Tankers (NYSE:NAT) Downgraded by StockNews.com to “Sell”

StockNews.com cut shares of Nordic American Tankers (NYSE:NAT) from a hold rating to a sell rating in a research report report published on Saturday morning.

Separately, Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “hold” rating and issued a $3.00 price objective on shares of Nordic American Tankers in a research report on Friday, February 28th.

Nordic American Tankers Stock Down 3.4 %

Shares of NYSE NAT opened at $2.44 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.73, a quick ratio of 0.56 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36. The business has a 50-day moving average of $2.66 and a 200-day moving average of $3.04. The firm has a market capitalization of $508.42 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.40 and a beta of -0.33. Nordic American Tankers has a 12 month low of $2.40 and a 12 month high of $4.40.

Nordic American Tankers (NYSE:NAT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, March 5th. The shipping company reported $0.01 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.03 by ($0.02). The firm had revenue of $46.39 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $51.38 million. Nordic American Tankers had a return on equity of 11.95% and a net margin of 26.41%. Sell-side analysts expect that Nordic American Tankers will post 0.24 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Nordic American Tankers Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 24th. Investors of record on Monday, March 10th will be paid a dividend of $0.06 per share. This represents a $0.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 9.86%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 10th. Nordic American Tankers’s payout ratio is currently 109.09%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Nordic American Tankers

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. WealthTrust Axiom LLC increased its position in shares of Nordic American Tankers by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. WealthTrust Axiom LLC now owns 652,683 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $1,632,000 after acquiring an additional 4,665 shares in the last quarter. Rhumbline Advisers increased its holdings in shares of Nordic American Tankers by 1.1% in the 4th quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 483,457 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $1,209,000 after purchasing an additional 5,439 shares in the last quarter. Xponance Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Nordic American Tankers by 41.4% in the 4th quarter. Xponance Inc. now owns 18,586 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $46,000 after purchasing an additional 5,439 shares in the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC raised its stake in shares of Nordic American Tankers by 8.4% in the fourth quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 75,107 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $188,000 after purchasing an additional 5,811 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Legal & General Group Plc lifted its holdings in shares of Nordic American Tankers by 20.1% during the fourth quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 40,074 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $100,000 after purchasing an additional 6,712 shares in the last quarter. 44.29% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Nordic American Tankers

Nordic American Tankers Limited, a tanker company, acquires and charters double-hull tankers in Bermuda and internationally. It operates a fleet of 20 Suezmax crude oil tankers. The company was incorporated in 1995 and is headquartered in Hamilton, Bermuda.