Artemis Investment Management LLP Purchases 420,100 Shares of Star Bulk Carriers Corp. (NASDAQ:SBLK)

Artemis Investment Management LLP raised its position in shares of Star Bulk Carriers Corp. (NASDAQ:SBLK) by 112.7% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 792,802 shares of the shipping company’s stock after purchasing an additional 420,100 shares during the quarter. Artemis Investment Management LLP owned 0.94% of Star Bulk Carriers worth $18,915,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. VisionPoint Advisory Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Star Bulk Carriers during the 4th quarter valued at about $36,000. Atlas Capital Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Star Bulk Carriers during the 1st quarter valued at about $36,000. Principal Securities Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Star Bulk Carriers during the 4th quarter valued at about $40,000. Creekmur Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Star Bulk Carriers during the 4th quarter valued at about $50,000. Finally, Tower Research Capital LLC TRC grew its stake in shares of Star Bulk Carriers by 1,787.3% during the 4th quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 4,624 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $98,000 after purchasing an additional 4,379 shares during the period. 33.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Star Bulk Carriers Trading Down 0.2 %

Shares of NASDAQ:SBLK opened at $24.38 on Friday. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $25.28 and a 200 day moving average of $23.47. The company has a market cap of $2.05 billion, a PE ratio of 10.98 and a beta of 1.04. The company has a current ratio of 1.43, a quick ratio of 1.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54. Star Bulk Carriers Corp. has a 12-month low of $16.57 and a 12-month high of $27.47.

Star Bulk Carriers (NASDAQ:SBLK) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 22nd. The shipping company reported $0.87 EPS for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.87. Star Bulk Carriers had a return on equity of 12.19% and a net margin of 20.57%. The company had revenue of $259.39 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $260.78 million. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Star Bulk Carriers Corp. will post 3.72 EPS for the current year.

Star Bulk Carriers Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 20th. Investors of record on Thursday, June 6th were issued a $0.75 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, June 6th. This is a boost from Star Bulk Carriers’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.45. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 12.31%. Star Bulk Carriers’s payout ratio is currently 135.14%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price objective on Star Bulk Carriers from $28.00 to $32.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 24th. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $30.00 price objective on shares of Star Bulk Carriers in a research note on Thursday, May 23rd. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded Star Bulk Carriers from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 24th.

Star Bulk Carriers Profile

Star Bulk Carriers Corp., a shipping company, engages in the ocean transportation of dry bulk cargoes worldwide. Its vessels transport a range of bulk commodities, including iron ores, minerals and grains, bauxite, fertilizers, and steel products. As of December 31, 2023, the company owned a fleet of 116 dry bulk vessels with combined carrying capacity of 13.1 million deadweight tonnage (dwt) consisting of Newcastlemax, Capesize, Post Panamax, Kamsarmax, Panamax, Ultramax, and Supramax vessels with carrying capacities between 53,489 dwt and 209,537 dwt.