Rovida Advisors Inc. Boosts Stock Holdings in Frontline plc (NYSE:FRO)

Rovida Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in Frontline plc (NYSE:FRO) by 60.0% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 160,000 shares of the shipping company’s stock after buying an additional 60,000 shares during the period. Frontline makes up approximately 1.8% of Rovida Advisors Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 12th largest holding. Rovida Advisors Inc. owned about 0.07% of Frontline worth $2,272,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of FRO. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in Frontline by 0.9% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 5,493,085 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $75,502,000 after purchasing an additional 51,073 shares during the period. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company grew its holdings in shares of Frontline by 1,326.2% in the third quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 527,470 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $12,053,000 after purchasing an additional 490,486 shares during the last quarter. Swiss National Bank raised its holdings in Frontline by 0.6% during the 4th quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 286,612 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $3,953,000 after buying an additional 1,845 shares during the last quarter. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky raised its holdings in Frontline by 3.8% during the 3rd quarter. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky now owns 143,510 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $3,279,000 after buying an additional 5,200 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Point72 Europe London LLP purchased a new stake in Frontline during the 3rd quarter valued at $3,219,000. Institutional investors own 22.70% of the company’s stock.

Frontline Trading Down 1.5 %

Shares of FRO opened at $16.05 on Wednesday. Frontline plc has a 1-year low of $13.17 and a 1-year high of $29.39. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.55 and a beta of -0.04. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $16.75 and its 200-day moving average price is $18.23. The company has a current ratio of 1.43, a quick ratio of 1.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.44.

Frontline (NYSE:FRO) last posted its earnings results on Friday, February 28th. The shipping company reported $0.20 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.20. The firm had revenue of $425.60 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $273.16 million. Frontline had a return on equity of 19.25% and a net margin of 25.64%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.46 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Frontline plc will post 1.78 EPS for the current year.

Frontline Cuts Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be given a dividend of $0.20 per share. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.98%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. Frontline’s dividend payout ratio is currently 36.04%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

FRO has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their price objective on shares of Frontline from $26.00 to $20.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. Kepler Capital Markets lowered Frontline from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $15.83 price target for the company. in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating, three have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Frontline has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $24.46.

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.