Frontline (NYSE:FRO) Shares Gap Up – Still a Buy?

Frontline plc (NYSE:FRO) shares gapped up before the market opened on Friday . The stock had previously closed at $17.30, but opened at $18.22. Frontline shares last traded at $17.87, with a volume of 1,098,552 shares trading hands.

Analyst Ratings Changes

FRO has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Kepler Capital Markets downgraded Frontline from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $15.83 target price on the stock. in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Jefferies Financial Group cut their target price on Frontline from $26.00 to $20.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating, three have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $24.03.

Frontline Trading Up 2.3 %

The stock has a market capitalization of $3.94 billion and a PE ratio of 7.23. The company has a current ratio of 1.43, a quick ratio of 1.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.44. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $15.91 and a 200-day moving average price of $19.74.

Frontline (NYSE:FRO) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 27th. The shipping company reported $0.34 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.39 by ($0.05). Frontline had a return on equity of 19.25% and a net margin of 25.64%. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.36 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that Frontline plc will post 1.78 earnings per share for the current year.

Frontline Cuts Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, December 11th were paid a $0.34 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, December 11th. This represents a $1.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 7.68%. Frontline’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 55.51%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Frontline

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in Frontline by 0.9% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 5,493,085 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $75,502,000 after purchasing an additional 51,073 shares in the last quarter. Cooper Creek Partners Management LLC purchased a new position in Frontline during the fourth quarter valued at $41,447,000. Renaissance Technologies LLC lifted its position in Frontline by 27.5% during the fourth quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 1,378,037 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $19,554,000 after purchasing an additional 297,437 shares in the last quarter. M&G PLC lifted its position in Frontline by 27.2% during the third quarter. M&G PLC now owns 1,110,763 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $25,164,000 after purchasing an additional 237,446 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Marshall Wace LLP lifted its position in Frontline by 137.2% during the fourth quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 1,090,427 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $15,473,000 after purchasing an additional 630,685 shares in the last quarter. 22.70% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Frontline

Frontline plc, a shipping company, engages in the seaborne transportation of crude oil and oil products worldwide. It owns and operates oil and product tankers. As of December 31, 2022, the company operated a fleet of 70 vessels. It is also involved in the charter, purchase, and sale of vessels. The company was founded in 1985 and is based in Limassol, Cyprus.