Star Bulk Carriers (NASDAQ:SBLK) Downgraded to Hold Rating by StockNews.com

StockNews.com downgraded shares of Star Bulk Carriers (NASDAQ:SBLK) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research note published on Thursday morning.

A number of other research firms have also recently weighed in on SBLK. Stifel Nicolaus cut shares of Star Bulk Carriers from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and dropped their target price for the company from $30.00 to $21.00 in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. DNB Markets raised Star Bulk Carriers from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $19.30 to $20.20 in a report on Thursday, November 21st. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group restated a “buy” rating and issued a $28.00 target price on shares of Star Bulk Carriers in a research note on Wednesday, November 20th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $23.80.

Star Bulk Carriers Trading Up 3.4 %

NASDAQ SBLK opened at $14.84 on Thursday. The business’s fifty day moving average is $16.13 and its 200-day moving average is $19.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44, a current ratio of 1.69 and a quick ratio of 1.50. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 5.01, a PEG ratio of 4.40 and a beta of 0.98. Star Bulk Carriers has a one year low of $14.30 and a one year high of $27.47.

Star Bulk Carriers Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, December 18th. Investors of record on Thursday, December 5th were paid a $0.60 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, December 5th. This represents a $2.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 16.17%. Star Bulk Carriers’s dividend payout ratio is 81.08%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Star Bulk Carriers

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Blue Trust Inc. grew its position in shares of Star Bulk Carriers by 51.3% in the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 3,063 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $46,000 after purchasing an additional 1,038 shares in the last quarter. Quarry LP grew its holdings in Star Bulk Carriers by 39.8% during the 3rd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 2,365 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $56,000 after buying an additional 673 shares in the last quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Star Bulk Carriers during the third quarter valued at about $57,000. Point72 DIFC Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Star Bulk Carriers in the second quarter worth about $72,000. Finally, AM Squared Ltd bought a new position in shares of Star Bulk Carriers in the third quarter valued at approximately $76,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 33.91% of the company’s stock.

About Star Bulk Carriers

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.