What happened
Shares of oil tanker owner Nordic American Tankers (NAT 0.27%) jumped by as much as 27.6% in trading on Monday after it was announced that an insider was buying shares. The stock closed the session up 26% at $2.42.
So what
The big news was that on Monday, board of directors member Alexander Hansson -- son of founder and CEO Herbjorn Hansson -- bought 250,000 shares of Nordic American stock for $2.05 per share. He now owns 1.44 million shares. The Hansson family, as a group, continues to constitute the largest private stakeholder in the company.
Image source: Getty Images.
Alexander Hansson's purchase came on the heels of the delivery of the company's fourth-quarter earnings report Friday. Nordic American Tankers booked voyage revenue of $22.6 million in the period, up from $16.3 million a year earlier, and a net loss of $21.0 million. The results are hardly impressive, but with oil prices high and demand rising around the world, it's possible the company will be a recovery story in the coming years.
Now what
Results are pretty weak in the oil tanker market, but that could turn around quickly given global trends. Unrest in Eastern Europe is causing energy concerns there, we're seeing rising demand in the U.S., and production growth isn't likely to keep up. That could help the tanker business, and Alexander Hansson is betting that it will help Nordic American Tankers' stock. Investors apparently agreed with his assessment Monday.
