Stifel Financial Corp Decreases Stake in Ardmore Shipping Co. (NYSE:ASC)

Stifel Financial Corp cut its holdings in shares of Ardmore Shipping Co. (NYSE:ASC) by 11.6% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 31,557 shares of the shipping company’s stock after selling 4,123 shares during the period. Stifel Financial Corp owned approximately 0.08% of Ardmore Shipping worth $571,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. bought a new stake in shares of Ardmore Shipping in the second quarter worth $29,000. Private Trust Co. NA purchased a new stake in shares of Ardmore Shipping during the 3rd quarter valued at about $31,000. Larson Financial Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Ardmore Shipping in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $34,000. nVerses Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Ardmore Shipping in the second quarter worth approximately $47,000. Finally, Nisa Investment Advisors LLC grew its position in Ardmore Shipping by 2,906.0% during the third quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 3,006 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $54,000 after buying an additional 2,906 shares during the period. 62.22% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have weighed in on ASC shares. Stifel Nicolaus downgraded shares of Ardmore Shipping from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and decreased their price target for the stock from $24.00 to $17.00 in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their target price on Ardmore Shipping from $20.00 to $17.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, November 14th. Fearnley Fonds raised Ardmore Shipping to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, September 27th. Finally, StockNews.com cut Ardmore Shipping from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 25th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Ardmore Shipping has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $20.00.

Ardmore Shipping Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE ASC opened at $11.97 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $500.85 million, a PE ratio of 3.35 and a beta of 0.31. Ardmore Shipping Co. has a 1 year low of $10.86 and a 1 year high of $23.44. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $12.54 and a 200-day moving average price of $17.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a current ratio of 3.57 and a quick ratio of 3.26.

Ardmore Shipping Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 13th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 29th were issued a dividend of $0.18 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 29th. This represents a $0.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.02%. Ardmore Shipping’s dividend payout ratio is presently 20.17%.

Ardmore Shipping Profile

Ardmore Shipping Corporation engages in the seaborne transportation of petroleum products and chemicals worldwide. The company's fleet consists of 22 owned vessels including 21 Eco-design and 1 Eco-mod vessel, and four chartered-in vessels. It serves oil majors, oil companies, oil and chemical traders, chemical companies, and pooling service providers.