Star Bulk Carriers (NASDAQ:SBLK) Receives “Buy” Rating from Jefferies Financial Group

Jefferies Financial Group reiterated their buy rating on shares of Star Bulk Carriers (NASDAQ:SBLK) in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. Jefferies Financial Group currently has a $28.00 target price on the shipping company’s stock.

SBLK has been the topic of several other research reports. StockNews.com cut shares of Star Bulk Carriers from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 12th. Stifel Nicolaus lowered shares of Star Bulk Carriers from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and reduced their price objective for the company from $30.00 to $21.00 in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft started coverage on shares of Star Bulk Carriers in a research note on Wednesday, September 4th. They set a “buy” rating and a $26.00 target price for the company. Finally, DNB Markets lowered Star Bulk Carriers from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Friday, October 11th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $23.80.

Star Bulk Carriers Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ SBLK opened at $18.63 on Wednesday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $20.72 and its two-hundred day moving average is $22.59. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44, a current ratio of 1.69 and a quick ratio of 1.34. The company has a market cap of $1.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.29 and a beta of 1.00. Star Bulk Carriers has a 1-year low of $18.52 and a 1-year high of $27.47.

Star Bulk Carriers Cuts Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, December 18th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, December 5th will be issued a $0.60 dividend. This represents a $2.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 12.88%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, December 5th. Star Bulk Carriers’s payout ratio is 94.59%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of SBLK. Quarry LP boosted its stake in Star Bulk Carriers by 39.8% in the third quarter. Quarry LP now owns 2,365 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $56,000 after acquiring an additional 673 shares in the last quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management boosted its position in shares of Star Bulk Carriers by 2.8% in the 3rd quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management now owns 32,630 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $773,000 after purchasing an additional 890 shares during the period. Mitchell Mcleod Pugh & Williams Inc. grew its stake in Star Bulk Carriers by 8.5% during the 2nd quarter. Mitchell Mcleod Pugh & Williams Inc. now owns 16,640 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $406,000 after buying an additional 1,310 shares during the last quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Star Bulk Carriers during the second quarter worth approximately $32,000. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. lifted its stake in Star Bulk Carriers by 190.5% in the third quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 2,025 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $49,000 after buying an additional 1,328 shares during the last quarter. 33.91% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.