Navigator (NYSE:NVGS) Cut to “Hold” at Zacks Research

Navigator (NYSE:NVGS) was downgraded by research analysts at Zacks Research from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday,Zacks.com reports.

Other research analysts have also issued research reports about the stock. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Navigator in a research note on Friday, March 27th. Citigroup raised their target price on shares of Navigator from $24.00 to $27.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Navigator from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday, March 15th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $23.33.

Navigator Stock Down 0.8%

Navigator stock opened at $23.24 on Tuesday. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $20.38 and its 200 day simple moving average is $18.81. Navigator has a fifty-two week low of $13.50 and a fifty-two week high of $23.54. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.26, a PEG ratio of 1.26 and a beta of 0.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59, a current ratio of 1.16 and a quick ratio of 1.10.

Navigator (NYSE:NVGS) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 6th. The shipping company reported $0.50 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.34 by $0.16. Navigator had a net margin of 18.84% and a return on equity of 7.01%. The business had revenue of $140.62 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $139.35 million. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Navigator will post 1.56 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Trading of Navigator

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. First Manhattan CO. LLC. raised its holdings in Navigator by 27.8% during the 4th quarter. First Manhattan CO. LLC. now owns 1,430,009 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $24,768,000 after buying an additional 311,259 shares during the period. First Eagle Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in Navigator by 1.1% during the 3rd quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC now owns 697,119 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $10,798,000 after buying an additional 7,574 shares during the period. Hodges Capital Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Navigator by 19.6% in the first quarter. Hodges Capital Management Inc. now owns 661,790 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $12,792,000 after purchasing an additional 108,467 shares during the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Navigator by 16.4% in the first quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 542,756 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $7,224,000 after purchasing an additional 76,287 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bridgeway Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Navigator by 29.1% in the fourth quarter. Bridgeway Capital Management LLC now owns 507,779 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $8,795,000 after purchasing an additional 114,532 shares during the last quarter. 18.95% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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).