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

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have commented on the company. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their price objective on International Seaways from $66.00 to $60.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, November 14th. Stifel Nicolaus cut shares of International Seaways from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and lowered their price target for the company from $69.00 to $56.00 in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, Fearnley Fonds upgraded shares of International Seaways to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, September 27th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $60.67.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, SVP Derek G. Solon sold 1,200 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $38.91, for a total value of $46,692.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 45,687 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,777,681.17. This represents a 2.56 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Lois K. Zabrocky sold 2,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the transaction, 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 position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 6,200 shares of company stock worth $248,012. 1.90% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of International Seaways

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of International Seaways by 27.3% during the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 28,583 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $1,474,000 after purchasing an additional 6,121 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its holdings in International Seaways by 0.8% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 47,891 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $2,428,000 after buying an additional 379 shares in the last quarter. Hohimer Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in International Seaways in the 3rd quarter worth about $240,000. Sunbelt Securities Inc. bought a new position in International Seaways during the 3rd quarter valued at about $52,000. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of International Seaways by 4.3% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 943,375 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $48,650,000 after acquiring an additional 38,871 shares during the last quarter. 67.29% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

International Seaways Stock Up 1.0 %

International Seaways stock traded up $0.40 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $41.59. The company had a trading volume of 648,650 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,021,783. International Seaways has a 12 month low of $32.11 and a 12 month high of $65.94. The company has a current ratio of 3.60, a quick ratio of 3.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $38.32 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $46.89. The company has a market capitalization of $2.05 billion, a PE ratio of 4.02 and a beta of -0.10.

International Seaways (NYSE:INSW) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 7th. The transportation company reported $1.57 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.42 by $0.15. The company had revenue of $225.20 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $208.75 million. International Seaways had a net margin of 50.91% and a return on equity of 24.65%. International Seaways’s revenue for the quarter was down 6.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.99 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that International Seaways will post 7.92 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

International Seaways Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 27th. Investors of record on Friday, December 13th were given a $1.32 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, December 13th. This is a boost from International Seaways’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.12. This represents a $5.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 12.70%. International Seaways’s dividend payout ratio is 4.64%.

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.