Victory Capital Management Inc. Acquires 334,704 Shares of Ardmore Shipping Co. (NYSE:ASC)

Victory Capital Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Ardmore Shipping Co. (NYSE:ASC) by 255.4% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 465,777 shares of the shipping company’s stock after buying an additional 334,704 shares during the quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. owned 1.11% of Ardmore Shipping worth $5,659,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in Ardmore Shipping by 1.3% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 99,389 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $1,799,000 after acquiring an additional 1,302 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its position in shares of Ardmore Shipping by 3.0% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 44,482 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $769,000 after purchasing an additional 1,304 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its holdings in Ardmore Shipping by 261.1% during the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,116 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 1,530 shares during the period. Private Trust Co. NA bought a new position in Ardmore Shipping during the third quarter valued at $31,000. Finally, Sanctuary Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Ardmore Shipping by 10.1% in the third quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC now owns 22,204 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $402,000 after acquiring an additional 2,041 shares during the period. 62.22% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on ASC shares. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price target on Ardmore Shipping from $13.00 to $11.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 14th. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $17.00 price objective on shares of Ardmore Shipping in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Ardmore Shipping currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $18.00.

Ardmore Shipping Stock Performance

Shares of ASC opened at $9.87 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $11.09 and a two-hundred day moving average of $13.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a quick ratio of 3.86 and a current ratio of 4.24. The stock has a market cap of $399.09 million, a P/E ratio of 3.22 and a beta of 0.23. Ardmore Shipping Co. has a one year low of $8.83 and a one year high of $23.44.

Ardmore Shipping (NYSE:ASC) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The shipping company reported $0.25 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.33 by ($0.08). Ardmore Shipping had a net margin of 32.78% and a return on equity of 20.48%. As a group, research analysts predict that Ardmore Shipping Co. will post 1.06 EPS for the current year.

Ardmore Shipping Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 28th were paid a $0.08 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 28th. This represents a $0.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.24%. Ardmore Shipping’s payout ratio is currently 10.46%.

Ardmore Shipping Company 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.