SFL (NYSE:SFL) Stock Price Breaks Above 50 Day Moving Average – Here’s Why

SFL Corporation Ltd. (NYSE:SFL) shares passed above its fifty day moving average during trading on Thursday. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $12.85 and traded as high as $13.20. SFL shares last traded at $13.1820, with a volume of 1,257,656 shares trading hands.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Benchmark restated a “buy” rating on shares of SFL in a research note on Wednesday, August 26th. Wall Street Zen raised SFL from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, August 22nd. Weiss Ratings raised SFL from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 27th. Finally, BTIG Research reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $14.00 price target on shares of SFL in a research note on Wednesday, August 26th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $14.00.

SFL Price Performance

The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $12.86 and a 200-day simple moving average of $11.39. The firm has a market cap of $1.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.98 and a beta of 0.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.75, a quick ratio of 0.38 and a current ratio of 0.38.

SFL (NYSE:SFL) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 26th. The shipping company reported $0.25 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.14 by $0.11. SFL had a return on equity of 3.41% and a net margin of 8.76%. The business had revenue of $200.77 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $179.65 million. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.01 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 4.1% on a year-over-year basis.

SFL Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 22nd. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, September 9th were paid a $0.22 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, September 9th. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.8%. SFL’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 183.33%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On SFL

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of SFL. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its position in SFL by 2.9% in the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 8,805,291 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $95,007,000 after acquiring an additional 244,621 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC raised its stake in shares of SFL by 3.9% in the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 685,833 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $7,400,000 after buying an additional 25,820 shares during the period. Renaissance Technologies LLC lifted its position in shares of SFL by 25.2% during the 1st quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 437,565 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $4,721,000 after buying an additional 88,100 shares during the last quarter. Burney Co. purchased a new position in shares of SFL during the 1st quarter valued at $879,000. Finally, Counterpoint Mutual Funds LLC purchased a new position in shares of SFL during the 1st quarter valued at $879,000. Institutional investors own 28.59% of the company’s stock.

SFL Company Profile

SFL Corporation Ltd. is a maritime and offshore asset-owning company headquartered in Hamilton, Bermuda, and listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol SFL. Formerly known as Ship Finance International Limited, the company was established in 2003 and has developed a diversified portfolio of vessels and offshore assets.

The company primarily acquires, owns and leases assets under long-term charter and lease agreements. Its portfolio has included crude oil and product tankers, dry bulk carriers, container ships, car carriers, offshore drilling units and other specialized maritime assets.