SFL Corporation Ltd. $SFL Shares Acquired by American Century Companies Inc.

American Century Companies Inc. lifted its position in shares of SFL Corporation Ltd. (NYSE:SFL) by 16.7% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 3,847,616 shares of the shipping company’s stock after acquiring an additional 550,011 shares during the quarter. American Century Companies Inc. owned 2.64% of SFL worth $28,973,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Brighton Jones LLC raised its holdings in SFL by 8.2% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 19,395 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $198,000 after purchasing an additional 1,474 shares during the period. Cetera Investment Advisers grew its holdings in SFL by 10.4% in the second quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 16,034 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $134,000 after purchasing an additional 1,510 shares during the period. International Assets Investment Management LLC increased its position in shares of SFL by 1.7% in the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 119,045 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $896,000 after buying an additional 2,000 shares in the last quarter. Nwam LLC raised its stake in shares of SFL by 17.6% during the 2nd quarter. Nwam LLC now owns 17,665 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $147,000 after buying an additional 2,640 shares during the period. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of SFL by 789.3% during the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 3,317 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 2,944 shares during the period. 28.59% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

SFL Price Performance

NYSE:SFL opened at $10.76 on Friday. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $9.24 and a two-hundred day moving average of $8.30. SFL Corporation Ltd. has a 12 month low of $6.73 and a 12 month high of $11.28. The firm has a market cap of $1.57 billion, a P/E ratio of -53.78 and a beta of 0.41. The company has a current ratio of 0.36, a quick ratio of 0.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.04.

SFL (NYSE:SFL) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 11th. The shipping company reported ($0.04) earnings per share for the quarter. SFL had a negative net margin of 3.61% and a negative return on equity of 0.30%. The firm had revenue of $175.51 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $168.36 million. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.15 EPS. The business’s revenue was down 23.1% compared to the same quarter last year.

SFL Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 30th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 12th will be issued a $0.20 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 12th. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 7.4%. SFL’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -400.00%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

SFL has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Wall Street Zen cut shares of SFL from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Saturday, February 14th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of SFL from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research report on Monday, February 2nd. Finally, BTIG Research increased their price objective on shares of SFL from $11.00 to $12.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 11th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, SFL has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $12.00.

SFL Profile

Ship Finance International Limited (NYSE: SFL) is an independent owner of modern, large-size ocean-going vessels that provides finance and leasing services to the global shipping industry. The company’s fleet encompasses a diversified mix of crude oil tankers, product and chemical tankers, liquefied natural gas (LNG) carriers, dry bulk carriers, container vessels and floating production storage and offloading (FPSO) units. By structuring long-term charter agreements and bareboat leases with major oil companies, commodity traders and offshore operators, Ship Finance International seeks to deliver stable cash flows and risk-adjusted returns for its shareholders.

In its core business, Ship Finance International acquires or finances vessels through forward sales agreements and then charters them out under fixed-rate contracts, typically ranging from five to 20 years in duration.