Principal Financial Group Inc. Has $568,000 Stock Holdings in Ardmore Shipping Co. (NYSE:ASC)

Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Ardmore Shipping Co. (NYSE:ASC) by 26.4% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 31,355 shares of the shipping company’s stock after buying an additional 6,553 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned approximately 0.07% of Ardmore Shipping worth $568,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of Ardmore Shipping during the 2nd quarter valued at about $29,000. Private Trust Co. NA acquired a new stake in shares of Ardmore Shipping in the 3rd quarter valued at $31,000. Larson Financial Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Ardmore Shipping in the 2nd quarter valued at $34,000. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Ardmore Shipping by 2,906.0% in the third quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 3,006 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $54,000 after purchasing an additional 2,906 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Quarry LP increased its position in Ardmore Shipping by 829.0% during the third quarter. Quarry LP now owns 3,558 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $64,000 after buying an additional 3,175 shares during the last quarter. 62.22% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Ardmore Shipping Stock Down 0.7 %

Shares of ASC opened at $12.34 on Monday. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $12.12 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $16.67. Ardmore Shipping Co. has a 12 month low of $10.86 and a 12 month high of $23.44. The stock has a market cap of $516.33 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 3.46 and a beta of 0.28. The company has a quick ratio of 3.26, a current ratio of 3.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03.

Ardmore Shipping Cuts Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 13th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 29th were paid a dividend of $0.18 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 29th. This represents a $0.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.83%. Ardmore Shipping’s dividend payout ratio is 20.17%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on ASC shares. Fearnley Fonds upgraded shares of Ardmore Shipping to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, September 27th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Ardmore Shipping from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 25th. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price target on shares of Ardmore Shipping from $20.00 to $17.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, November 14th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lowered Ardmore Shipping from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and cut their target price for the company from $24.00 to $17.00 in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Ardmore Shipping has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $20.00.

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.