Safe Bulkers (NYSE:SB) Upgraded by StockNews.com to Buy Rating

Safe Bulkers (NYSE:SB) was upgraded by stock analysts at StockNews.com from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a note issued to investors on Friday.

Separately, Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $6.00 price objective on shares of Safe Bulkers in a research note on Thursday, November 14th.

Safe Bulkers Stock Performance

SB stock traded down $0.08 during trading on Friday, hitting $3.68. 591,779 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 675,410. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52, a current ratio of 1.34 and a quick ratio of 1.34. Safe Bulkers has a 1 year low of $3.66 and a 1 year high of $6.33. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $4.26 and its 200 day simple moving average is $4.96. The company has a market cap of $392.95 million, a PE ratio of 4.09 and a beta of 0.91.

Institutional Trading of Safe Bulkers

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. LSV Asset Management lifted its position in shares of Safe Bulkers by 440.7% during the 2nd quarter. LSV Asset Management now owns 552,357 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $3,215,000 after acquiring an additional 450,209 shares during the period. Acadian Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Safe Bulkers by 20.0% during the 2nd quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 2,278,803 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $13,251,000 after purchasing an additional 380,270 shares during the last quarter. Denali Advisors LLC grew its stake in Safe Bulkers by 316.6% in the 2nd quarter. Denali Advisors LLC now owns 418,300 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $2,435,000 after acquiring an additional 317,900 shares during the period. Segall Bryant & Hamill LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Safe Bulkers in the third quarter valued at $1,480,000. Finally, Walleye Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of Safe Bulkers during the 3rd quarter valued at about $1,109,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 21.69% of the company’s stock.

About Safe Bulkers

Safe Bulkers, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, provides marine drybulk transportation services. It owns and operates drybulk vessels for transporting bulk cargoes primarily coal, grain, and iron ore. The company has a fleet of 47 drybulk vessels having an aggregate carrying capacity of 4,719,600 deadweight tons.