Short Interest in International Seaways, Inc. (NYSE:INSW) Grows By 139.8%

International Seaways, Inc. (NYSE:INSW) saw a significant increase in short interest in the month of January. As of January 15th, there was short interest totalling 3,190,000 shares, an increase of 139.8% from the December 31st total of 1,330,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 835,300 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 3.8 days.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

INSW has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Stifel Nicolaus cut shares of International Seaways from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and decreased their price objective for the company from $69.00 to $56.00 in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price target on International Seaways from $66.00 to $60.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, November 14th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $60.67.

International Seaways Price Performance

Shares of NYSE INSW traded up $0.47 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $39.46. 193,045 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 982,730. International Seaways has a one year low of $32.11 and a one year high of $65.94. The stock has a market cap of $1.94 billion, a P/E ratio of 3.81 and a beta of -0.10. The company has a quick ratio of 3.60, a current ratio of 3.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $37.24 and its 200-day moving average price is $45.38.

International Seaways (NYSE:INSW) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 7th. The transportation company reported $1.57 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.42 by $0.15. International Seaways had a return on equity of 24.65% and a net margin of 50.91%. The company had revenue of $225.20 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $208.75 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.99 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was down 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that International Seaways will post 7.82 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

International Seaways Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 27th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 13th were issued a dividend of $1.32 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, December 13th. This is an increase from International Seaways’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.12. This represents a $5.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 13.38%. International Seaways’s payout ratio is presently 4.64%.

Insider Transactions at International Seaways

In other International Seaways news, SVP William F. Nugent sold 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $35.07, for a total transaction of $35,070.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 49,803 shares in the company, valued at $1,746,591.21. This trade represents a 1.97 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Lois K. Zabrocky sold 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $41.83, for a total value of $83,660.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 151,475 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,336,199.25. The trade was a 1.30 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 5,200 shares of company stock worth $204,962. Company insiders own 1.90% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On International Seaways

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Blue Trust Inc. acquired a new position in shares of International Seaways in the 3rd quarter valued at about $41,000. Sunbelt Securities Inc. bought a new stake in shares of International Seaways in the 3rd quarter valued at $52,000. KBC Group NV lifted its position in shares of International Seaways by 65.2% during the 3rd quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 1,084 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $56,000 after acquiring an additional 428 shares during the period. R Squared Ltd bought a new position in International Seaways during the fourth quarter worth $59,000. Finally, Quarry LP grew its holdings in International Seaways by 408.0% in the second quarter. Quarry LP now owns 1,453 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $86,000 after purchasing an additional 1,167 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 67.29% of the company’s stock.

International Seaways Company Profile

International Seaways, Inc owns and operates a fleet of oceangoing vessels for the transportation of crude oil and petroleum products in the international flag trade. It operates in two segments: Crude Tankers and Product Carriers. As of December 31, 2023, the company owned a fleet of 73 vessels. It serves independent and state-owned oil companies, oil traders, refinery operators, and international government entities.