Seacor Holdings Inc Stock Upgraded (CKH)

NEW YORK (TheStreet) -- Seacor Holdings (NYSE:CKH) has been upgraded by TheStreet Ratings from hold to buy. Among the primary strengths of the company is its solid financial position based on a variety of debt and liquidity measures that we have evaluated. We feel these strengths outweigh the fact that the company has had lackluster performance in the stock itself.

Highlights from the ratings report include:

• Despite currently having a low debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58, it is higher than that of the industry average, inferring that management of debt levels may need to be evaluated further. Despite the fact that CKH's debt-to-equity ratio is mixed in its results, the company's quick ratio of 2.35 is high and demonstrates strong liquidity.
• SEACOR HOLDINGS INC's earnings per share declined by 37.0% in the most recent quarter compared to the same quarter a year ago. The company has suffered a declining pattern of earnings per share over the past two years. However, we anticipate this trend to reverse over the coming year. During the past fiscal year, SEACOR HOLDINGS INC reported lower earnings of $1.93 versus $11.50 in the prior year. This year, the market expects an improvement in earnings ($5.97 versus $1.93).
• CKH, with its decline in revenue, underperformed when compared the industry average of 15.3%. Since the same quarter one year prior, revenues slightly dropped by 3.2%. Weakness in the company's revenue seems to have hurt the bottom line, decreasing earnings per share.
• The gross profit margin for SEACOR HOLDINGS INC is rather low; currently it is at 22.90%. Regardless of CKH's low profit margin, it has managed to increase from the same period last year. Despite the mixed results of the gross profit margin, the net profit margin of 3.00% trails the industry average.
• Return on equity has greatly decreased when compared to its ROE from the same quarter one year prior. This is a signal of major weakness within the corporation. Compared to other companies in the Energy Equipment & Services industry and the overall market, SEACOR HOLDINGS INC's return on equity significantly trails that of both the industry average and the S&P 500.

.

SEACOR Holdings Inc. owns, operates, invests in, and markets equipment, primarily in the offshore oil and gas, industrial aviation, and marine transportation industries worldwide. The company has a P/E ratio of 51.6, above the average transportation industry P/E ratio of 39.3 and above the S&P 500 P/E ratio of 17.7. Seacor has a market cap of $2.03 billion and is part of the services sector and transportation industry. Shares are up 10.7% year to date as of the close of trading on Tuesday.

You can view the full Seacor Ratings Report or get investment ideas from our investment research center.
-- Written by a member of TheStreet RatingsStaff

For more information on Seacor Holdings Inc click any of the following:

• Seacor Holdings Inc Stock Price

• Seacor Holdings Inc Analyst Ratings

• Seacor Holdings Inc Key Stats & Profile

• Seacor Holdings Inc Earnings

• Seacor Holdings Inc Ratio Comparison

• Seacor Holdings Inc Growth Rates

• Seacor Holdings Inc Balance Sheet

• Seacor Holdings Inc Cash Flow

• Seacor Holdings Inc Income Statement