vkyryl/iStock via Getty Images
Golden Ocean (NASDAQ:GOGL) -11.1% in Wednesday’s trading despite posting better than expected Q1 earnings, as adjusted EBITDA and revenues both fell from the prior quarter.
Jefferies downgraded Golden Ocean (GOGL) to Hold from Buy with a $15.50 price target following the results, noting the stock’s strong YTD gains and saying Q2 bookings look slightly below expectations, prompting a cut to estimates for Q2 earnings of $0.28/share from its earlier forecast of $0.37.
Golden Ocean (GOGL) has fixed 75% of its 2Q Capesize operating days at $27,200/day and 82% of its Panamaxes at $14,500/day, but Jefferies says it had forecast the company’s Capes to earn $30,000/day and its Panamaxes $15,500/day.
“We see Golden Ocean as a solid platform to benefit from a firm dry bulk market outlook,” Jefferies analyst Omar Nokta writes, noting the sector has come a long way since last year’s H1 when spot rates were hovering at just above breakeven levels.
The company’s “high quality fleet with an average age of just 7.7 years positions it well to capture outsized earnings while its fleet-wide breakeven of $14,100/day gives it plenty of optionality,” according to Nokta.
DNB Markets analyst Jorgen Lian, who rates the stock as a Sell, says Golden Ocean’s (GOGL) Q1 was broadly in-line, while bookings for Q2 and Q3 look mixed, adding he would expect limited revisions to consensus, Bloomberg reported.
Source link
