Navigator Holdings Ltd. (NYSE:NVGS) Sees Large Drop in Short Interest

Navigator Holdings Ltd. (NYSE:NVGS) was the target of a significant decline in short interest during the month of December. As of December 15th, there was short interest totaling 1,090,887 shares, a decline of 16.8% from the November 30th total of 1,311,295 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 328,332 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 3.3 days. Approximately 1.6% of the shares of the company are sold short. Approximately 1.6% of the shares of the company are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 328,332 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 3.3 days.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Geode Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Navigator during the second quarter valued at approximately $5,677,000. Bridgeway Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Navigator in the 3rd quarter worth $6,091,000. Ameriprise Financial Inc. bought a new stake in Navigator during the second quarter valued at about $4,773,000. Bank of America Corp DE boosted its position in Navigator by 143.8% during the second quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 263,369 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $3,727,000 after purchasing an additional 155,336 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC raised its holdings in Navigator by 284.3% in the first quarter. Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC now owns 206,108 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $2,743,000 after purchasing an additional 152,470 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 18.95% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

NVGS has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Wall Street Zen lowered Navigator from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, December 27th. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “buy” rating and set a $19.00 price target on shares of Navigator in a research note on Wednesday, November 5th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Navigator in a research note on Monday. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft started coverage on shares of Navigator in a report on Thursday, September 25th. They set a “buy” rating and a $24.00 target price for the company. Finally, Pareto Securities initiated coverage on shares of Navigator in a report on Tuesday, December 9th. They issued a “buy” rating for the company. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and four have assigned a Buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Navigator has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $21.50.

Navigator Stock Up 0.9%

NVGS opened at $17.33 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.14, a current ratio of 1.18 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60. Navigator has a 52 week low of $10.55 and a 52 week high of $18.29. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $17.32 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $16.22. The company has a market capitalization of $1.20 billion, a PE ratio of 11.48, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.55 and a beta of 0.42.

Navigator (NYSE:NVGS) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, November 4th. The shipping company reported $0.36 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.36. Navigator had a return on equity of 6.83% and a net margin of 17.85%.The firm had revenue of $153.09 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $133.84 million. Analysts forecast that Navigator will post 1.25 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Navigator Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 16th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, November 25th were given a dividend of $0.07 per share. This represents a $0.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, November 25th. This is a positive change from Navigator’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.05. Navigator’s dividend payout ratio is currently 18.54%.

Navigator Company Profile

Navigator Holdings Ltd. is a global shipping company specializing in the seaborne transportation of liquefied gases. The company’s fleet is purpose-built to carry a range of petrochemical gases, including liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), ethylene, propylene and ammonia. Navigator’s vessels are designed to meet the stringent safety and environmental standards required for handling pressurized and refrigerated gases, offering flexible capacity to customers across the energy and chemical sectors.

Navigator operates one of the largest and most modern fleets of gas carriers in the industry, with vessels ranging from fully pressurized gas carriers to specialized very large ethane carriers (VLECs).