Global Ship Lease (NYSE:GSL) Issues Quarterly Earnings Results

Global Ship Lease (NYSE:GSL) announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday. The shipping company reported $2.56 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.40 by $0.16, Briefing.com reports. Global Ship Lease had a net margin of 54.33% and a return on equity of 22.35%. The firm’s revenue was up 3.7% on a year-over-year basis.

Global Ship Lease Stock Performance

GSL traded down $2.04 during trading on Friday, reaching $38.90. 120,099 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 345,882. Global Ship Lease has a 52 week low of $23.95 and a 52 week high of $42.70. The stock has a market cap of $1.40 billion, a P/E ratio of 3.41 and a beta of 0.96. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $39.13 and a 200 day moving average of $37.13. The company has a current ratio of 2.04, a quick ratio of 2.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30.

Global Ship Lease Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 3rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 22nd will be issued a dividend of $0.625 per share. This represents a $2.50 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 22nd. Global Ship Lease’s dividend payout ratio is 21.95%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

GSL has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. B. Riley Financial raised their target price on Global Ship Lease from $42.00 to $48.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, March 6th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Global Ship Lease in a report on Tuesday, April 21st. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Global Ship Lease from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 5th. Fearnley Fonds upgraded shares of Global Ship Lease from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on shares of Global Ship Lease in a report on Friday, April 24th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $45.00 target price for the company. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have given a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $46.50.

Insider Activity

In other Global Ship Lease news, insider Georgios Giannopoulos sold 7,692 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $38.51, for a total value of $296,218.92. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. 7.40% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Global Ship Lease

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Triumph Capital Management acquired a new stake in shares of Global Ship Lease in the third quarter valued at about $25,000. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. acquired a new position in shares of Global Ship Lease during the 4th quarter worth about $29,000. Russell Investments Group Ltd. boosted its stake in Global Ship Lease by 73.9% during the 4th quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 1,673 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $59,000 after purchasing an additional 711 shares during the period. Advisory Services Network LLC acquired a new stake in Global Ship Lease in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $191,000. Finally, Virtus Advisers LLC grew its holdings in Global Ship Lease by 46.9% in the 4th quarter. Virtus Advisers LLC now owns 5,437 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $191,000 after buying an additional 1,737 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 50.08% of the company’s stock.

About Global Ship Lease

Global Ship Lease (NYSE: GSL) is a Bermuda-based containership charter owner focused on acquiring, owning and leasing modern, fuel-efficient vessels to major liner operators. Founded in 2011 and listed on the New York Stock Exchange the same year, the company’s fleet primarily comprises post-Panamax containerships designed to serve the high-volume Asia–Europe and transpacific shipping lanes. By specializing in long-term charter agreements, Global Ship Lease aims to maintain stable revenue streams and minimize spot-market volatility.

The company’s business model centers on negotiating multi-year time charters with leading global shipping lines.