Nordic American Tankers (NYSE:NAT) Shares Gap Down – Should You Sell?

Shares of Nordic American Tankers Limited (NYSE:NAT) gapped down before the market opened on Tuesday . The stock had previously closed at $5.63, but opened at $5.46. Nordic American Tankers shares last traded at $5.5150, with a volume of 906,430 shares.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on NAT shares. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Nordic American Tankers in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Nordic American Tankers from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, January 17th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “hold” rating and issued a $3.50 target price on shares of Nordic American Tankers in a research note on Friday, November 28th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $3.25.

Nordic American Tankers Trading Down 2.5%

The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $4.48 and a 200-day simple moving average of $3.80. The company has a quick ratio of 1.94, a current ratio of 2.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87. The stock has a market cap of $1.11 billion, a PE ratio of 74.80 and a beta of -0.49.

Nordic American Tankers (NYSE:NAT) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 26th. The shipping company reported $0.06 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.09 by ($0.03). Nordic American Tankers had a net margin of 6.39% and a return on equity of 2.47%. The company had revenue of $58.76 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $69.43 million. Equities analysts forecast that Nordic American Tankers Limited will post 0.24 earnings per share for the current year.

Nordic American Tankers Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 24th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 10th will be issued a dividend of $0.17 per share. This represents a $0.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 13.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 10th. This is a boost from Nordic American Tankers’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.13. Nordic American Tankers’s payout ratio is presently 971.43%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Nordic American Tankers

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV boosted its position in shares of Nordic American Tankers by 8.3% in the fourth quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV now owns 44,606 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $153,000 after acquiring an additional 3,433 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC increased its holdings in Nordic American Tankers by 21.4% during the 4th quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 883,037 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $3,038,000 after acquiring an additional 155,768 shares during the period. XTX Topco Ltd purchased a new stake in Nordic American Tankers in the 4th quarter worth approximately $160,000. nVerses Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Nordic American Tankers in the 4th quarter worth approximately $305,000. Finally, Stokes Family Office LLC bought a new position in Nordic American Tankers in the 4th quarter valued at $37,000. 44.29% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Nordic American Tankers Company Profile

Nordic American Tankers Limited is a Bermuda-based shipping company specializing in the ownership and operation of Suezmax crude oil tankers. The company’s fleet is employed on the spot and period charter markets, transporting crude oil across major global trade routes. By focusing on commercially flexible employment strategies, Nordic American Tankers seeks to optimize vessel utilization and generate stable income for shareholders.

Founded in 1995 and headquartered in Hamilton, Bermuda, Nordic American Tankers maintains technical and commercial management arrangements through established ship-management partners.