Global Ship Lease (NYSE:GSL) Downgraded to “Hold” Rating by Zacks Research

Zacks Research lowered shares of Global Ship Lease (NYSE:GSL) from a strong-buy rating to a hold rating in a research note published on Tuesday morning,Zacks.com reports.

Several other analysts also recently weighed in on the company. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price target on Global Ship Lease from $33.00 to $39.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, November 10th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Global Ship Lease in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Global Ship Lease has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $33.50.

Global Ship Lease Stock Up 0.0%

NYSE:GSL opened at $34.52 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34, a current ratio of 2.19 and a quick ratio of 2.14. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $33.10 and its 200-day moving average price is $30.46. The company has a market capitalization of $1.23 billion, a PE ratio of 3.10 and a beta of 0.98. Global Ship Lease has a 1-year low of $17.73 and a 1-year high of $37.22.

Global Ship Lease (NYSE:GSL) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 12th. The shipping company reported $2.62 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.27 by $0.35. Global Ship Lease had a net margin of 53.62% and a return on equity of 23.98%. The business had revenue of $192.67 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $180.36 million. The company’s revenue was up 10.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts predict that Global Ship Lease will post 9.74 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Global Ship Lease Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 4th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 21st were paid a $0.625 dividend. This is an increase from Global Ship Lease’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. This represents a $2.50 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 7.2%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 21st. Global Ship Lease’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 22.44%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Global Ship Lease

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Isthmus Partners LLC lifted its stake in Global Ship Lease by 0.3% during the 2nd quarter. Isthmus Partners LLC now owns 113,972 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $2,999,000 after acquiring an additional 347 shares during the period. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its position in Global Ship Lease by 77.2% during the third quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 989 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 431 shares during the period. Prospera Financial Services Inc boosted its holdings in Global Ship Lease by 4.5% in the second quarter. Prospera Financial Services Inc now owns 11,023 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $290,000 after purchasing an additional 477 shares during the last quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Global Ship Lease by 5.2% in the third quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 9,827 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $302,000 after purchasing an additional 485 shares during the last quarter. Finally, SBI Securities Co. Ltd. grew its position in Global Ship Lease by 29.0% in the 3rd quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. now owns 2,179 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $67,000 after purchasing an additional 490 shares during the period. 50.08% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Global Ship Lease

Global Ship Lease (NYSE: GSL) is a Bermuda-based containership charter owner focused on acquiring, owning and leasing modern, fuel-efficient vessels to major liner operators. Founded in 2011 and listed on the New York Stock Exchange the same year, the company’s fleet primarily comprises post-Panamax containerships designed to serve the high-volume Asia–Europe and transpacific shipping lanes. By specializing in long-term charter agreements, Global Ship Lease aims to maintain stable revenue streams and minimize spot-market volatility.

The company’s business model centers on negotiating multi-year time charters with leading global shipping lines.