Navios Maritime Partners (NYSE:NMM) Reaches New 52-Week High – Should You Buy?

Navios Maritime Partners LP (NYSE:NMM)’s share price reached a new 52-week high during trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $63.56 and last traded at $62.4030, with a volume of 30440 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $61.94.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently issued reports on NMM. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Navios Maritime Partners in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Wall Street Zen cut Navios Maritime Partners from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Hold rating, According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold”.

Navios Maritime Partners Trading Up 0.5%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61, a current ratio of 1.03 and a quick ratio of 1.03. The company has a market capitalization of $1.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.13 and a beta of 1.38. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $55.61 and a 200 day moving average price of $50.59.

Navios Maritime Partners (NYSE:NMM) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, November 18th. The shipping company reported $2.83 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.55 by $0.28. Navios Maritime Partners had a net margin of 20.04% and a return on equity of 8.69%. The business had revenue of $346.92 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $334.64 million. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $3.15 earnings per share. Navios Maritime Partners’s quarterly revenue was up 1.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts expect that Navios Maritime Partners LP will post 12.64 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Navios Maritime Partners Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 12th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 9th were paid a dividend of $0.05 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 9th. This represents a $0.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.3%. Navios Maritime Partners’s payout ratio is currently 2.29%.

Institutional Trading of Navios Maritime Partners

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in NMM. Royal Bank of Canada raised its position in Navios Maritime Partners by 50.9% in the fourth quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 599 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 202 shares in the last quarter. Allworth Financial LP bought a new stake in shares of Navios Maritime Partners in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $47,000. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Navios Maritime Partners in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $62,000. State of Wyoming acquired a new position in shares of Navios Maritime Partners in the 4th quarter worth approximately $137,000. Finally, Mariner LLC bought a new position in shares of Navios Maritime Partners during the 4th quarter worth approximately $208,000. 62.74% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Navios Maritime Partners

Navios Maritime Partners L.P. (NYSE: NMM) is a dry bulk shipping company that owns and operates a fleet of Capesize, Panamax and Supramax vessels. The partnership charters its vessels under medium- and long-term contracts to a diverse group of charterers, providing seaborne transportation for major bulk cargoes such as iron ore, coal, grain and fertilizers. Through this asset-light model, Navios Maritime Partners seeks to generate stable cash flows while retaining flexibility to capitalize on market opportunities.

Formed in November 2007 and sponsored by Navios Maritime Holdings Inc, the partnership leverages the operating platform and commercial management capabilities of the Navios group.