Tower Research Capital LLC TRC Purchases 12,210 Shares of Safe Bulkers, Inc. (NYSE:SB)

Tower Research Capital LLC TRC raised its holdings in shares of Safe Bulkers, Inc. (NYSE:SB) by 432.8% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 15,031 shares of the shipping company’s stock after acquiring an additional 12,210 shares during the period. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC’s holdings in Safe Bulkers were worth $59,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in SB. Sigma Planning Corp bought a new stake in shares of Safe Bulkers in the 3rd quarter valued at about $37,000. Jump Financial LLC bought a new stake in Safe Bulkers in the third quarter valued at approximately $41,000. Mraz Amerine & Associates Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Safe Bulkers during the third quarter valued at approximately $43,000. Pinnacle Wealth Planning Services Inc. bought a new position in shares of Safe Bulkers in the fourth quarter worth approximately $46,000. Finally, Welch Group LLC increased its stake in shares of Safe Bulkers by 30.0% in the fourth quarter. Welch Group LLC now owns 13,000 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $51,000 after buying an additional 3,000 shares during the period. 21.69% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Safe Bulkers Stock Up 1.7 %

Shares of Safe Bulkers stock traded up $0.08 during trading on Monday, hitting $5.15. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 954,385 shares, compared to its average volume of 835,422. Safe Bulkers, Inc. has a 52 week low of $2.97 and a 52 week high of $5.24. The company has a market capitalization of $574.23 million, a PE ratio of 8.30 and a beta of 1.02. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $4.83 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $4.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61, a quick ratio of 2.33 and a current ratio of 2.63.

Safe Bulkers (NYSE:SB) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 13th. The shipping company reported $0.25 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.15 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $82.29 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $72.70 million. Safe Bulkers had a return on equity of 9.05% and a net margin of 27.20%. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.29 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that Safe Bulkers, Inc. will post 0.85 earnings per share for the current year.

Safe Bulkers Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 19th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 1st were paid a $0.05 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 29th. This represents a $0.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.89%. Safe Bulkers’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 32.26%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, Jefferies Financial Group raised Safe Bulkers from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $4.00 to $6.00 in a research note on Tuesday, February 27th.

Safe Bulkers Profile

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.