Royce & Associates LP Has $8.33 Million Holdings in Genco Shipping & Trading Limited (NYSE:GNK)

Royce & Associates LP grew its position in shares of Genco Shipping & Trading Limited (NYSE:GNK) by 23.9% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 597,860 shares of the shipping company’s stock after buying an additional 115,173 shares during the quarter. Royce & Associates LP owned approximately 1.40% of Genco Shipping & Trading worth $8,334,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in GNK. R Squared Ltd bought a new position in Genco Shipping & Trading during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Quarry LP lifted its stake in shares of Genco Shipping & Trading by 535.8% in the 3rd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 4,266 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $83,000 after purchasing an additional 3,595 shares during the last quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Genco Shipping & Trading by 830.3% in the fourth quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 11,033 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $154,000 after purchasing an additional 9,847 shares in the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC increased its position in Genco Shipping & Trading by 26.8% during the fourth quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 14,190 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $198,000 after buying an additional 3,000 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Intech Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Genco Shipping & Trading in the third quarter worth about $202,000. 58.62% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on GNK shares. Jefferies Financial Group cut 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 shares of Genco Shipping & Trading from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $23.00.

Insider Activity at Genco Shipping & Trading

In other news, CAO Joseph Adamo sold 6,226 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, February 24th. The shares were 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 approximately $374,532.84. This represents a 18.84 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CFO Peter George Allen sold 8,984 shares of Genco Shipping & Trading stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $13.96, for a total transaction of $125,416.64. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 45,251 shares in the company, valued at approximately $631,703.96. This trade represents a 16.56 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 28,812 shares of company stock worth $402,216. 2.50% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Genco Shipping & Trading Trading Down 0.8 %

Shares of GNK stock opened at $13.77 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 3.09, a quick ratio of 2.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08. Genco Shipping & Trading Limited has a 1 year low of $13.36 and a 1 year high of $23.43. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $14.31 and its 200 day simple moving average is $15.70. The firm has a market capitalization of $588.56 million, a P/E ratio of 7.87, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.64 and a beta of 0.99.

Genco Shipping & Trading (NYSE:GNK) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 19th. The shipping company reported $0.29 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates 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 company had revenue of $67.95 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $67.36 million. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Genco Shipping & Trading Limited will post 0.48 EPS for the current year.

Genco Shipping & Trading Cuts Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 18th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 11th were issued a dividend of $0.30 per share. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 8.72%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, March 11th. Genco Shipping & Trading’s payout ratio is presently 68.57%.

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.