Safe Bulkers, Inc. (NYSE:SB) Shares Acquired by New York State Common Retirement Fund

New York State Common Retirement Fund grew its stake in Safe Bulkers, Inc. (NYSE:SB) by 15.5% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 213,359 shares of the shipping company’s stock after purchasing an additional 28,700 shares during the period. New York State Common Retirement Fund owned approximately 0.20% of Safe Bulkers worth $762,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Verition Fund Management LLC grew its position in Safe Bulkers by 27.0% in the 3rd quarter. Verition Fund Management LLC now owns 18,400 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $95,000 after buying an additional 3,913 shares during the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC lifted its stake in shares of Safe Bulkers by 19.6% in the 4th quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 25,204 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $90,000 after acquiring an additional 4,122 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Safe Bulkers by 10.1% in the fourth quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 70,987 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $253,000 after acquiring an additional 6,534 shares in the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Safe Bulkers by 10.9% in the third quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 112,485 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $583,000 after acquiring an additional 11,040 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Intech Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Safe Bulkers during the third quarter worth about $86,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 21.69% of the company’s stock.

Safe Bulkers Stock Performance

Shares of SB stock opened at $3.69 on Tuesday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $3.58 and a 200 day moving average price of $4.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58, a quick ratio of 1.34 and a current ratio of 1.91. The stock has a market cap of $388.56 million, a PE ratio of 4.45 and a beta of 0.90. Safe Bulkers, Inc. has a 1 year low of $3.31 and a 1 year high of $6.33.

Safe Bulkers (NYSE:SB) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 18th. The shipping company reported $0.15 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.14 by $0.01. Safe Bulkers had a net margin of 31.65% and a return on equity of 10.04%. The business had revenue of $69.16 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $71.90 million. Sell-side analysts forecast that Safe Bulkers, Inc. will post 0.62 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Safe Bulkers Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 21st. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd will be given a dividend of $0.05 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $0.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.42%. Safe Bulkers’s dividend payout ratio is currently 24.10%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on SB shares. StockNews.com lowered Safe Bulkers from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, January 27th. Loop Capital set a $4.20 price objective on Safe Bulkers in a research report on Monday, January 27th. DNB Markets upgraded shares of Safe Bulkers from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $4.20 target price on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $6.00 price target on shares of Safe Bulkers in a report on Wednesday, February 19th.

About Safe Bulkers

Safe Bulkers, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, provides marine drybulk transportation services. It owns and operates drybulk vessels for transporting bulk cargoes primarily coal, grain, and iron ore. The company has a fleet of 47 drybulk vessels having an aggregate carrying capacity of 4,719,600 deadweight tons.