Genco Shipping & Trading (NYSE:GNK) Reaches New 1-Year Low – Time to Sell?

Genco Shipping & Trading Limited (NYSE:GNK)’s stock price hit a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as low as $13.50 and last traded at $13.54, with a volume of 39785 shares. The stock had previously closed at $13.52.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages recently issued reports on GNK. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their price objective on Genco Shipping & Trading from $20.00 to $19.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 20th. StockNews.com cut Genco Shipping & Trading from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $23.00.

Genco Shipping & Trading Stock Performance

The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $14.33 and a 200 day moving average price of $15.81. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08, a quick ratio of 2.49 and a current ratio of 3.09. The stock has a market cap of $606.09 million, a PE ratio of 8.10, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.64 and a beta of 0.99.

Genco Shipping & Trading (NYSE:GNK) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 19th. The shipping company reported $0.29 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.56 by ($0.27). Genco Shipping & Trading had a net margin of 18.06% and a return on equity of 7.82%. The business had revenue of $67.95 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $67.36 million. Research analysts forecast that Genco Shipping & Trading Limited will post 0.48 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Genco Shipping & Trading Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 18th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 11th will be issued a dividend of $0.30 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 11th. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 8.47%. Genco Shipping & Trading’s dividend payout ratio is presently 68.57%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CAO Joseph Adamo sold 6,226 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $13.96, for a total value of $86,914.96. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 26,829 shares in the company, valued at $374,532.84. This trade represents a 18.84 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, insider Jesper Christensen sold 13,602 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $13.96, for a total value of $189,883.92. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 57,322 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $800,215.12. This trade represents a 19.18 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 28,812 shares of company stock worth $402,216. Insiders own 2.50% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Genco Shipping & Trading

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in GNK. Teacher Retirement System of Texas acquired a new stake in Genco Shipping & Trading during the 4th quarter worth about $3,692,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its position in Genco Shipping & Trading by 70.8% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 530,523 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $10,345,000 after purchasing an additional 219,907 shares during the period. Barclays PLC grew its position in Genco Shipping & Trading by 173.3% during the 4th quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 282,603 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $3,940,000 after purchasing an additional 179,216 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its position in Genco Shipping & Trading by 155.0% during the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 285,091 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $5,559,000 after purchasing an additional 173,270 shares during the period. Finally, Royce & Associates LP grew its position in Genco Shipping & Trading by 43.1% during the 3rd quarter. Royce & Associates LP now owns 482,687 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $9,412,000 after purchasing an additional 145,471 shares during the period. 58.62% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Genco Shipping & Trading

Genco Shipping & Trading Ltd. is an international ship owning company, which engages in the transportation of iron ore, coal, grain, steel products, and other drybulk cargoes. The company was founded on September 27, 2004 and is headquartered in New York, NY.