Ardmore Shipping (NYSE:ASC) Given “Buy” Rating at Jefferies Financial Group

Jefferies Financial Group reissued their buy rating on shares of Ardmore Shipping (NYSE:ASC) in a report released on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a $17.00 price target on the shipping company’s stock.

Separately, Stifel Nicolaus cut Ardmore Shipping from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and decreased their price target for the company from $24.00 to $17.00 in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Ardmore Shipping has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $20.00.

Ardmore Shipping Trading Down 6.8 %

ASC opened at $10.75 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a current ratio of 3.57 and a quick ratio of 3.26. Ardmore Shipping has a fifty-two week low of $10.70 and a fifty-two week high of $23.44. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $11.90 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $14.87. The firm has a market capitalization of $449.91 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 3.01 and a beta of 0.25.

Ardmore Shipping (NYSE:ASC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 13th. The shipping company reported $0.25 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.33 by ($0.08). Ardmore Shipping had a return on equity of 23.63% and a net margin of 36.22%. As a group, research analysts predict that Ardmore Shipping will post 2.8 earnings per share for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ardmore Shipping

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Private Trust Co. NA bought a new position in shares of Ardmore Shipping in the 3rd quarter worth about $31,000. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its stake in Ardmore Shipping by 261.1% during the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,116 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 1,530 shares during the period. Signaturefd LLC increased its holdings in Ardmore Shipping by 63.3% in the fourth quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 2,371 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 919 shares in the last quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Ardmore Shipping by 302.4% in the fourth quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 2,519 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 1,893 shares during the period. Finally, Nisa Investment Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Ardmore Shipping by 2,906.0% during the 3rd quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 3,006 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $54,000 after buying an additional 2,906 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 62.22% of the company’s stock.

Ardmore Shipping Company Profile

Ardmore Shipping Corporation engages in the seaborne transportation of petroleum products and chemicals worldwide. The company's fleet consists of 22 owned vessels including 21 Eco-design and 1 Eco-mod vessel, and four chartered-in vessels. It serves oil majors, oil companies, oil and chemical traders, chemical companies, and pooling service providers.