Frontline plc (NYSE:FRO) Short Interest Update

Frontline plc (NYSE:FRO) was the target of a large growth in short interest in December. As of December 31st, there was short interest totalling 6,080,000 shares, a growth of 10.3% from the December 15th total of 5,510,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 2,820,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 2.2 days. Currently, 4.3% of the shares of the stock are short sold.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

FRO has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Kepler Capital Markets lowered shares of Frontline from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $15.83 target price on the stock. in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Jefferies Financial Group cut their price target on Frontline from $26.00 to $20.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. BTIG Research upgraded shares of Frontline from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $30.00 target price for the company in a report on Monday, October 7th. Finally, Fearnley Fonds raised shares of Frontline to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, September 27th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating, three have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $24.03.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Frontline

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Godsey & Gibb Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Frontline during the 3rd quarter worth about $25,000. Blue Trust Inc. increased its position in shares of Frontline by 124.4% in the third quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 4,837 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $111,000 after acquiring an additional 2,681 shares in the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Frontline by 4,965.6% in the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 4,711 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $116,000 after acquiring an additional 4,618 shares during the period. U S Global Investors Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Frontline during the 3rd quarter valued at $135,000. Finally, Clear Harbor Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in Frontline during the 4th quarter worth $214,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 22.70% of the company’s stock.

Frontline Trading Down 0.7 %

NYSE:FRO traded down $0.13 on Monday, reaching $17.36. The stock had a trading volume of 4,011,623 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,416,114. Frontline has a 12-month low of $13.17 and a 12-month high of $29.39. The company has a market cap of $3.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.09 and a beta of 0.01. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $16.29 and its two-hundred day moving average is $20.59. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.44, a current ratio of 1.43 and a quick ratio of 1.43.

Frontline (NYSE:FRO) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 27th. The shipping company reported $0.34 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.39 by ($0.05). Frontline had a net margin of 25.64% and a return on equity of 19.25%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.36 EPS. Equities analysts expect that Frontline will post 1.83 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Frontline Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, December 11th were issued a dividend of $0.34 per share. This represents a $1.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 7.83%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, December 11th. Frontline’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 55.51%.

About Frontline

Frontline plc, a shipping company, engages in the seaborne transportation of crude oil and oil products worldwide. It owns and operates oil and product tankers. As of December 31, 2022, the company operated a fleet of 70 vessels. It is also involved in the charter, purchase, and sale of vessels. The company was founded in 1985 and is based in Limassol, Cyprus.