Star Bulk Carriers (NASDAQ:SBLK) Shares Down 1.5%

Star Bulk Carriers Corp. (NASDAQ:SBLK)’s share price traded down 1.5% on Friday . The stock traded as low as $21.25 and last traded at $21.51. 266,914 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 83% from the average session volume of 1,593,457 shares. The stock had previously closed at $21.84.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms recently commented on SBLK. Jefferies Financial Group restated a “buy” rating and set a $30.00 price target on shares of Star Bulk Carriers in a research report on Thursday, May 23rd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft initiated coverage on shares of Star Bulk Carriers in a research report on Wednesday, September 4th. They set a “buy” rating and a $26.00 price target on the stock. StockNews.com raised shares of Star Bulk Carriers from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 24th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price objective on shares of Star Bulk Carriers from $28.00 to $32.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, May 24th.

Star Bulk Carriers Stock Down 0.4 %

The company has a current ratio of 1.51, a quick ratio of 1.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48. The company has a market cap of $1.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.69 and a beta of 0.97. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $21.74 and its 200-day moving average price is $23.66.

Star Bulk Carriers (NASDAQ:SBLK) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, August 7th. The shipping company reported $0.78 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.79 by ($0.01). Star Bulk Carriers had a return on equity of 13.58% and a net margin of 24.05%. The business had revenue of $352.88 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $329.38 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.47 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Star Bulk Carriers Corp. will post 3.32 EPS for the current year.

Star Bulk Carriers Cuts Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 6th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, August 27th were issued a dividend of $0.70 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, August 27th. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 12.87%. Star Bulk Carriers’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 126.13%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Star Bulk Carriers

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in Star Bulk Carriers by 39.3% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 285,214 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $6,064,000 after acquiring an additional 80,406 shares in the last quarter. Principal Securities Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Star Bulk Carriers in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $40,000. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. grew its stake in shares of Star Bulk Carriers by 17.4% in the fourth quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 70,154 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $1,491,000 after buying an additional 10,407 shares in the last quarter. Chesapeake Capital Corp IL acquired a new position in Star Bulk Carriers during the fourth quarter worth $847,000. Finally, Armor Advisors L.L.C. increased its stake in shares of Star Bulk Carriers by 56.1% during the 4th quarter. Armor Advisors L.L.C. now owns 133,576 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $2,840,000 after purchasing an additional 48,000 shares during the last quarter. 33.91% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Star Bulk Carriers Company 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.