Global Ship Lease (NYSE:GSL) Reaches New 12-Month High – What’s Next?

Global Ship Lease, Inc. (NYSE:GSL)’s share price reached a new 52-week high during trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $37.70 and last traded at $37.6560, with a volume of 134009 shares. The stock had previously closed at $36.50.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently issued reports on GSL. Zacks Research lowered Global Ship Lease from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 23rd. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price objective on Global Ship Lease from $33.00 to $39.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, November 10th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Global Ship Lease in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Global Ship Lease presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $33.50.

Global Ship Lease Stock Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $1.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 3.37 and a beta of 0.93. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $35.34 and its 200 day simple moving average is $32.12. The company has a quick ratio of 2.14, a current ratio of 2.19 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34.

Global Ship Lease (NYSE:GSL) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, November 12th. The shipping company reported $2.62 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.27 by $0.35. Global Ship Lease had a net margin of 53.62% and a return on equity of 23.98%. The business had revenue of $192.67 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $180.36 million. The business’s revenue was up 10.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts expect that Global Ship Lease, Inc. will post 9.74 earnings per share for the current year.

Global Ship Lease Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 4th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 21st were given a $0.625 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 21st. This is a positive change from Global Ship Lease’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. This represents a $2.50 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.7%. Global Ship Lease’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 22.44%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Global Ship Lease

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Kingswood Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Global Ship Lease in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $272,000. Evergreen Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Global Ship Lease by 14.5% during the 4th quarter. Evergreen Capital Management LLC now owns 7,885 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $276,000 after acquiring an additional 999 shares during the period. LOM Asset Management Ltd acquired a new position in Global Ship Lease in the 4th quarter valued at $49,000. Capital Advisory Group Advisory Services LLC lifted its position in shares of Global Ship Lease by 2.0% during the 4th quarter. Capital Advisory Group Advisory Services LLC now owns 51,902 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $1,819,000 after acquiring an additional 1,018 shares during the period. Finally, Kathmere Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Global Ship Lease by 15.3% during the 4th quarter. Kathmere Capital Management LLC now owns 7,892 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $277,000 after acquiring an additional 1,046 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 50.08% of the company’s stock.

Global Ship Lease Company Profile

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.