International Seaways, Inc. (NYSE:INSW) Short Interest Update

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently commented on INSW. Stifel Nicolaus lowered 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 report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price objective on International Seaways from $66.00 to $60.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, November 14th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $60.67.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, SVP William F. Nugent sold 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $39.54, for a total value of $39,540.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 50,803 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,008,750.62. The trade was a 1.93 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Derek G. Solon sold 1,200 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $38.91, for a total transaction of $46,692.00. Following 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 disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 5,200 shares of company stock worth $204,962. 1.90% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of International Seaways

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of INSW. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its position in International Seaways by 685.6% during the fourth quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 224,544 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $8,070,000 after acquiring an additional 195,961 shares in the last quarter. Rhumbline Advisers raised its stake in International Seaways by 83.0% in the fourth quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 119,903 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $4,309,000 after buying an additional 54,395 shares during the period. New York State Teachers Retirement System bought a new position in shares of International Seaways during the 4th quarter worth approximately $311,000. Empowered Funds LLC increased its holdings in shares of International Seaways by 470.8% during the 4th quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 273,032 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $9,813,000 after acquiring an additional 225,196 shares during the last quarter. Finally, State of Alaska Department of Revenue bought a new stake in International Seaways in the 4th quarter valued at $804,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 67.29% of the company’s stock.

International Seaways Stock Up 1.2 %

Shares of International Seaways stock traded up $0.47 on Friday, hitting $39.46. The company had a trading volume of 193,045 shares, compared to its average volume of 982,730. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $37.24 and a 200-day moving average of $45.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 3.60 and a quick ratio of 3.60. International Seaways has a twelve month low of $32.11 and a twelve month high of $65.94. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.94 billion, a P/E ratio of 3.81 and a beta of -0.10.

International Seaways (NYSE:INSW) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The transportation company reported $1.57 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.42 by $0.15. The company had revenue of $225.20 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $208.75 million. International Seaways had a return on equity of 24.65% and a net margin of 50.91%. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.99 earnings per share. Research analysts predict that International Seaways will post 7.82 earnings per share for the current year.

International Seaways Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 27th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 13th were given a dividend of $1.32 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend 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 13.38%. International Seaways’s 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.