Global Ship Lease (NYSE:GSL) Hits New 52-Week High – Should You Buy?

Global Ship Lease, Inc. (NYSE:GSL) hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $45.76 and last traded at $45.6980, with a volume of 26879 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $45.13.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

GSL has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Zacks Research upgraded Global Ship Lease from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, July 27th. B. Riley Financial raised their price objective on Global Ship Lease from $48.00 to $52.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 6th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their target price on Global Ship Lease from $45.00 to $50.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 6th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Global Ship Lease from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, August 8th. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Global Ship Lease in a report on Friday, July 17th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have given a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Global Ship Lease presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $51.00.

Global Ship Lease Trading Up 1.7%

The company has a 50 day moving average of $41.92 and a two-hundred day moving average of $39.97. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.65 billion, a PE ratio of 4.42 and a beta of 0.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a quick ratio of 2.06 and a current ratio of 2.13.

Global Ship Lease (NYSE:GSL) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The shipping company reported $2.48 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.42 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $198.69 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $186.85 million. Global Ship Lease had a return on equity of 19.92% and a net margin of 49.10%.The firm’s revenue was up 3.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.67 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that Global Ship Lease, Inc. will post 9.62 EPS for the current year.

Global Ship Lease Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 3rd. Investors of record on Friday, August 21st will be given a $0.625 dividend. This represents a $2.50 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 21st. Global Ship Lease’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 24.04%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Global Ship Lease news, CEO Thomas Arthur Lister sold 30,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $44.26, for a total transaction of $1,327,800.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 15,934 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $705,238.84. The trade was a 65.31% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CFO Anastasios Psaropoulos sold 48,330 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $45.02, for a total transaction of $2,175,816.60. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 68,698 shares in the company, valued at $3,092,783.96. The trade was a 41.30% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold a total of 80,000 shares of company stock valued at $3,578,817 over the last quarter. 7.40% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Global Ship Lease

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Triumph Capital Management acquired a new stake in Global Ship Lease during the 3rd quarter worth about $25,000. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. purchased a new stake in Global Ship Lease during the 4th quarter valued at about $29,000. SHP Wealth Management acquired a new position in shares of Global Ship Lease in the fourth quarter valued at about $35,000. Hilton Head Capital Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Global Ship Lease in the fourth quarter worth about $35,000. Finally, Strengthening Families & Communities LLC purchased a new position in shares of Global Ship Lease in the fourth quarter worth about $55,000. Hedge funds and other 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.