Nordic American Tankers (NYSE:NAT) Sets New 1-Year Low - What's Next?

Nordic American Tankers Limited (NYSE:NAT - Get Free Report)'s stock price reached a new 52-week low on Thursday . The company traded as low as $2.47 and last traded at $2.47, with a volume of 331441 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $2.51.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have commented on the stock. Evercore ISI reduced their price target on shares of Nordic American Tankers from $4.50 to $4.00 and set an "in-line" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, August 30th. StockNews.com raised shares of Nordic American Tankers from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, December 2nd. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a "hold" rating and issued a $3.50 target price on shares of Nordic American Tankers in a research report on Friday, November 29th.

Nordic American Tankers Stock Down 1.6 %

The firm has a market capitalization of $515.73 million, a PE ratio of 8.52 and a beta of -0.26. The company has a current ratio of 0.73, a quick ratio of 0.56 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $3.05 and a 200 day simple moving average of $3.51.

Nordic American Tankers Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a monthly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 16th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 17th will be given a dividend of $0.04 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 17th. This represents a $0.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 19.43%. Nordic American Tankers's payout ratio is currently 55.17%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Nordic American Tankers

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. SG Americas Securities LLC grew its stake in shares of Nordic American Tankers by 260.2% in the second quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 43,343 shares of the shipping company's stock worth $173,000 after purchasing an additional 31,310 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its position in shares of Nordic American Tankers by 10.7% in the 2nd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 692,602 shares of the shipping company's stock worth $2,757,000 after buying an additional 67,009 shares during the last quarter. TrueMark Investments LLC purchased a new position in shares of Nordic American Tankers during the second quarter valued at approximately $4,373,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Nordic American Tankers by 8.6% in the 2nd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 128,756 shares of the shipping company's stock worth $512,000 after purchasing an additional 10,171 shares during the period. Finally, Commonwealth Equity Services LLC lifted its stake in shares of Nordic American Tankers by 30.5% in the 2nd quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 308,463 shares of the shipping company's stock valued at $1,228,000 after purchasing an additional 72,139 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 44.29% of the company's stock.

About Nordic American Tankers

Nordic American Tankers Limited, a tanker company, acquires and charters double-hull tankers in Bermuda and internationally. It operates a fleet of 20 Suezmax crude oil tankers. The company was incorporated in 1995 and is headquartered in Hamilton, Bermuda.