First, it was his son. Now two of chief executive Herbjorn Hansson's lieutenants are stocking up on Nordic American Tankers shares.
On Wednesday, the New York-listed suezmax owner's head of chartering Erik Tomstad bought 84,760 shares for $3.37.
Tomstad's buy was followed by finance manager Alexander Kihle purchasing 72,000 shares at $3.54 Thursday.
Nordic American Tankers shares opened Thursday at $3.38, shooting up as high as $3.50 in early trading.
The shares opened the week at $2.54, coming off a 2020 low of $2.46 on 20 March. Its 52-week low was $1.66 last August.
Last week, the company announced a two-year share repurchase plan, in which it will buy back as many as 4.5 million of 147 million of outstanding shares.
Its quarterly dividend has also skyrocketed in recent quarters, rising from a penny for the second quarter of 2019 to $0.14 for the first quarter of 2020, doubling its fourth-quarter 2019 dividend.
The first-quarter dividend was announced Tuesday and comes with a record date of 26 May. It will be paid in June.
The rising share price and dividend come amid good news for the tanker sector, as Saudi Arabia dumps millions of barrels of oil into the market in its ongoing price war with Russia, raising tanker demand.
Tomstad and Kihle's buys come after Hansson's son, NAT board member Alexander Hansson, spent more than $1m to acquire 350,000 shares at $2.92 each.
The younger Hansson's investment has already gained more than $200,000, roughly one-fifth of the total investment.
