Signaturefd LLC Reduces Stake in Star Bulk Carriers Corp. (NASDAQ:SBLK)

Signaturefd LLC reduced its holdings in Star Bulk Carriers Corp. (NASDAQ:SBLK) by 22.9% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 1,604 shares of the shipping company’s stock after selling 476 shares during the quarter. Signaturefd LLC’s holdings in Star Bulk Carriers were worth $34,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Ramirez Asset Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Star Bulk Carriers in the third quarter worth about $7,752,000. Artemis Investment Management LLP increased its position in Star Bulk Carriers by 407.1% during the 4th quarter. Artemis Investment Management LLP now owns 372,702 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $7,924,000 after buying an additional 299,200 shares in the last quarter. Jessup Wealth Management Inc purchased a new position in Star Bulk Carriers during the fourth quarter valued at $5,042,000. GSA Capital Partners LLP bought a new stake in Star Bulk Carriers in the third quarter worth $1,977,000. Finally, CFM Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Star Bulk Carriers in the fourth quarter worth $1,768,000. Institutional investors own 33.91% of the company’s stock.

Star Bulk Carriers Price Performance

NASDAQ SBLK opened at $24.82 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.09, a current ratio of 1.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.09 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.02 and a beta of 1.07. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $23.94 and a 200-day moving average price of $21.73. Star Bulk Carriers Corp. has a 52 week low of $16.57 and a 52 week high of $25.16.

Star Bulk Carriers (NASDAQ:SBLK) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 13th. The shipping company reported $0.73 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.57 by $0.16. Star Bulk Carriers had a net margin of 18.28% and a return on equity of 9.77%. The business had revenue of $263.46 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $236.40 million. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.90 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that Star Bulk Carriers Corp. will post 4.19 earnings per share for the current year.

Star Bulk Carriers Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 12th were issued a dividend of $0.45 per share. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 7.25%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 11th. This is a positive change from Star Bulk Carriers’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. Star Bulk Carriers’s payout ratio is currently 101.69%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, Stifel Nicolaus upped their target price on shares of Star Bulk Carriers from $76.00 to $83.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 14th.

Star Bulk Carriers 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.