Navellier & Associates Inc. Reduces Stock Holdings in Safe Bulkers, Inc. (NYSE:SB)

Navellier & Associates Inc. lessened its stake in shares of Safe Bulkers, Inc. (NYSE:SB) by 3.6% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 87,119 shares of the shipping company’s stock after selling 3,232 shares during the quarter. Navellier & Associates Inc. owned approximately 0.08% of Safe Bulkers worth $451,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Intech Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in Safe Bulkers during the 3rd quarter worth about $86,000. Segall Bryant & Hamill LLC purchased a new stake in Safe Bulkers during the 3rd quarter worth about $1,480,000. Empowered Funds LLC increased its position in Safe Bulkers by 5.3% during the 3rd quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 519,967 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $2,693,000 after purchasing an additional 26,398 shares in the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. increased its position in Safe Bulkers by 120.5% during the 3rd quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 39,558 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $205,000 after purchasing an additional 21,619 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Aigen Investment Management LP purchased a new stake in Safe Bulkers during the 3rd quarter worth about $90,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 21.69% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have commented on SB shares. StockNews.com cut Safe Bulkers from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. Jefferies Financial Group restated a “buy” rating and issued a $6.00 price target on shares of Safe Bulkers in a report on Thursday, November 14th.

Safe Bulkers Stock Performance

NYSE SB opened at $4.12 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $439.93 million, a P/E ratio of 4.70 and a beta of 0.95. Safe Bulkers, Inc. has a 1-year low of $3.45 and a 1-year high of $6.33. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52, a current ratio of 1.34 and a quick ratio of 2.11. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $4.60 and its 200-day simple moving average is $5.13.

Safe Bulkers Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 2nd will be paid a $0.05 dividend. This represents a $0.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.85%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 2nd. Safe Bulkers’s dividend payout ratio is currently 22.22%.

Safe Bulkers Profile

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.