Star Bulk Carriers (NASDAQ:SBLK) Sets New 12-Month High – Here’s What Happened

Star Bulk Carriers Corp. (NASDAQ:SBLK) shares reached a new 52-week high during trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $31.29 and last traded at $31.1370, with a volume of 112748 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $30.87.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $32.00 target price on shares of Star Bulk Carriers in a research note on Friday, May 22nd. Zacks Research raised shares of Star Bulk Carriers from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 14th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target on shares of Star Bulk Carriers from $29.00 to $31.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, May 28th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised shares of Star Bulk Carriers from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 27th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and three have assigned a Buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $31.50.

Star Bulk Carriers Stock Up 2.5%

The firm has a market cap of $3.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.48 and a beta of 0.70. The company has a quick ratio of 1.74, a current ratio of 1.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $27.84 and a 200-day moving average price of $26.12.

Star Bulk Carriers (NASDAQ:SBLK) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The shipping company reported $1.21 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.95 by $0.26. Star Bulk Carriers had a return on equity of 11.72% and a net margin of 23.87%.The firm had revenue of $284.60 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $284.29 million. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Star Bulk Carriers Corp. will post 4.32 EPS for the current year.

Star Bulk Carriers Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 3rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 21st will be issued a $0.90 dividend. This is a positive change from Star Bulk Carriers’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 21st. This represents a $3.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 11.3%. Star Bulk Carriers’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 141.18%.

Insider Activity at Star Bulk Carriers

In other news, Director Raffaele Zagari sold 50,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $31.20, for a total transaction of $1,560,000.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 1,903,000 shares in the company, valued at $59,373,600. This represents a 2.56% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, COO Nikolaos Reskos sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $29.50, for a total transaction of $147,500.00. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 400,875 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,825,812.50. The trade was a 1.23% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last quarter, insiders sold 101,650 shares of company stock worth $3,027,835. 0.90% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Star Bulk Carriers

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Impala Asset Management LLC raised its position in shares of Star Bulk Carriers by 39.2% in the 4th quarter. Impala Asset Management LLC now owns 167,000 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $3,210,000 after buying an additional 47,000 shares during the period. Bank of America Corp DE boosted its holdings in Star Bulk Carriers by 48.5% in the first quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 565,562 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $12,991,000 after acquiring an additional 184,837 shares during the last quarter. Counterpoint Mutual Funds LLC purchased a new stake in Star Bulk Carriers during the first quarter valued at about $4,788,000. Hsbc Holdings PLC purchased a new stake in Star Bulk Carriers during the first quarter valued at about $909,000. Finally, Fearnley Asset Management AS acquired a new stake in Star Bulk Carriers during the fourth quarter worth about $11,096,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 33.91% of the company’s stock.

About Star Bulk Carriers

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.