Golden Ocean Group Limited (NASDAQ:GOGL) to Issue $0.15 Quarterly Dividend

Golden Ocean Group Limited (NASDAQ:GOGL) announced a quarterly dividend on Wednesday, February 26th, Wall Street Journal reports. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 11th will be given a dividend of 0.15 per share by the shipping company on Friday, March 21st. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.19%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 11th.

Golden Ocean Group has decreased its dividend payment by an average of 9.1% per year over the last three years. Golden Ocean Group has a payout ratio of 71.0% indicating that its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Equities research analysts expect Golden Ocean Group to earn $0.95 per share next year, which means the company may not be able to cover its $1.20 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 126.3%.

Golden Ocean Group Trading Down 1.5 %

Golden Ocean Group stock traded down $0.15 during trading on Friday, hitting $9.70. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 7,295,906 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,181,882. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $9.16 and its 200 day moving average is $10.64. Golden Ocean Group has a 1-year low of $8.52 and a 1-year high of $15.77. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.02 and a beta of 1.16. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65, a quick ratio of 1.22 and a current ratio of 1.22.

Golden Ocean Group (NASDAQ:GOGL) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 27th. The shipping company reported $0.33 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.29 by $0.04. Golden Ocean Group had a net margin of 23.89% and a return on equity of 13.14%. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Golden Ocean Group will post 1.14 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently commented on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a “hold” rating and set a $10.00 price target on shares of Golden Ocean Group in a research report on Wednesday. Pareto Securities reissued a “hold” rating and set a $12.50 price objective on shares of Golden Ocean Group in a research note on Thursday, November 21st.

Golden Ocean Group Company Profile

Golden Ocean Group Limited, a shipping company, owns and operates a fleet of dry bulk vessels worldwide. The company’s dry bulk vessels comprise Newcastlemax, Capesize, and Panamax vessels operating in the spot and time charter markets. It also transports a range of bulk commodities, including ores, coal, grains, and fertilizers.