Star Bulk Carriers (NASDAQ:SBLK) Upgraded by Wall Street Zen to Strong-Buy Rating

Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Star Bulk Carriers (NASDAQ:SBLK) from a hold rating to a strong-buy rating in a research note published on Saturday.

A number of other equities analysts have also recently weighed in on SBLK. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Star Bulk Carriers in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Zacks Research lowered shares of Star Bulk Carriers from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, January 30th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $22.00.

Star Bulk Carriers Stock Down 1.8%

SBLK opened at $22.33 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 1.72 and a quick ratio of 1.56. Star Bulk Carriers has a 12 month low of $12.06 and a 12 month high of $27.20. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.63 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.59 and a beta of 0.73. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $23.08 and a 200-day simple moving average of $20.38.

Star Bulk Carriers (NASDAQ:SBLK) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 25th. The shipping company reported $0.62 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.52 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $230.79 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $250.51 million. Star Bulk Carriers had a return on equity of 3.90% and a net margin of 8.07%. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Star Bulk Carriers will post 1.74 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Star Bulk Carriers Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 19th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 9th were issued a dividend of $0.37 per share. This is a boost from Star Bulk Carriers’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.11. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 9th. This represents a $1.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.6%. Star Bulk Carriers’s payout ratio is currently 202.74%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Star Bulk Carriers

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Allianz Asset Management GmbH grew its holdings in shares of Star Bulk Carriers by 34.8% during the third quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH now owns 652,982 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $12,139,000 after buying an additional 168,491 shares in the last quarter. Boston Partners raised its position in shares of Star Bulk Carriers by 36.5% in the second quarter. Boston Partners now owns 171,186 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $2,953,000 after buying an additional 45,818 shares during the last quarter. Mirabella Financial Services LLP purchased a new position in shares of Star Bulk Carriers during the third quarter valued at approximately $2,822,000. DNB Asset Management AS lifted its stake in shares of Star Bulk Carriers by 1.9% during the second quarter. DNB Asset Management AS now owns 813,351 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $14,030,000 after buying an additional 14,792 shares during the period. Finally, Horizon Kinetics Asset Management LLC boosted its position in Star Bulk Carriers by 8.0% during the second quarter. Horizon Kinetics Asset Management LLC now owns 49,555 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $855,000 after acquiring an additional 3,663 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 is a global shipping company engaged in the ocean transport of dry bulk commodities. The company owns and operates a diversified fleet of bulk carriers, including Handymax, Supramax, Panamax and Capesize vessels. Its ships are designed to carry a broad range of cargoes, such as iron ore, coal, grain, bauxite and phosphate, catering to industrial and agricultural customers worldwide.

The company’s vessels operate on major trade routes across the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans, connecting producers and consumers in Asia, Europe, North and South America.