Empowered Funds LLC, a hedge fund based in the United States with more than $2 trillion in assets under management, recently cut its stake in Scorpio Tankers Inc. The move resulted in a 21.9% decrease in the fund’s holdings of STNG stock during the first quarter of 2023. According to the company’s most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, Empowered Funds LLC owned approximately 0.07% of Scorpio Tankers worth $2,469,000 after selling 12,321 shares.
Scorpio Tankers is an oil and gas transportation company that offers marine transportation services for petroleum products. The firm leases and owns tankers that operate under four segments: MR (medium range), LR2 (long range), Handymax, and LR1. Scorpio Tankers was founded in Monaco by Emanuele A. Lauro on July 1, 2009.
The company’s stock market performance has been dynamic lately. Shares of STNG began trading at $46.10 on June 19th, which represents a drop-off from many prior months that saw stocks reach much higher levels like $62 or above before dipping back down again.
Over the last year, Scorpio Tankers’ share price has fluctuated widely between a low of $28.50 and a high of $64.20 over one year, making it an attractive option for speculative traders who are willing to ride out fluctuations for potential rewards.
Moreover, Scorpio Tankers holds impressive metrics beyond just its varying share prices— including debt-to-equity ratio of just 0.32 and current ratio/quick ratio both greater than one—an indicator that suggests this business is poised for strategic growth even as other businesses struggle due to COVID-19 fallout.
With a market capitalization of $2.55 billion and PE ratio hovering around three—that’s not a typo—Scorpio Tankers is a rare bird in the world of shipping companies. Its price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.13 and beta of 0.38 also suggest that it’s both underpriced and less volatile than other investments based on industry-wide trends.
At current prices, then, Scorpio Tankers looks like a rare opportunity to invest in an established business at bargain-basement rates given that its fundamentals remain strong even as market volatility remains high elsewhere. While anyone considering investing should always conduct their own due diligence, STNG has certainly got our attention here at the Daily Business Report—we’ll be keeping a close eye on stock movements over the coming months to see whether Empowered Funds LLC’s exit from owning any shares was simply bad timing or an indication of something more significant.
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Scorpio Tankers Gains Institutional Investor Attention and Reports Strong Q1 Results, Increases Dividend
Scorpio Tankers, a petroleum products marine transportation company, has recently gained the attention of several institutional investors. Victory Capital Management Inc., Parallax Volatility Advisers L.P., Natixis, Truist Financial Corp and Alliancebernstein L.P. have all bought new stakes in the shipping company during the fourth quarter of 2023. Additionally, Alliancebernstein L.P. raised its holdings by 18%, now owning 63,530 shares valued at $3,416,000 after acquiring an additional 9,700 shares in the last quarter. Approximately 65.52% of Scorpio Tanker’s stock is currently owned by institutional investors.
Several research firms including JPMorgan Chase & Co., Stifel Nicolaus and Jefferies Financial Group have weighed in on STNG with buy ratings and positive price objectives for the company. The average price target according to Bloomberg is $74.17, supporting a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy”.
Scorpio Tankers’ profits are looking solid as it posted earnings results on Tuesday 2 May demonstrating an EPS result of $3.31 per share for Q1 2023 compared to analyst estimates of $387.37 million; revenue was up 119.3% compared to the same quarter last year which saw Scorpio Tankers post a negative EPS result of ($0.27).
In addition to these positive results, Scorpio Tankers announced an increase in quarterly dividends from $0.20 to $0.25 per share payable to record holders on Tuesday June 13th and will be paid out on Friday June 30th giving a dividend yield of 2.17%; this works out as an annualized dividend payout ratio of just over six and a half percent (6.66%).
Overall Scorpio Tankers continues its position as a healthy fiscal entity whose increasing investment has been spurred by notable increases in profitability through AUM optimization and tight management of investments.