Ardmore Shipping (NYSE:ASC) Trading Up 6.5% – Here’s What Happened

Shares of Ardmore Shipping Corporation (NYSE:ASC) rose 6.5% on Thursday . The company traded as high as $15.23 and last traded at $15.1750. 492,200 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 30% from the average session volume of 704,054 shares. The stock had previously closed at $14.25.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have commented on ASC. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Ardmore Shipping from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, May 9th. Evercore set a $19.00 price target on Ardmore Shipping in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Ardmore Shipping presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $17.00.

Ardmore Shipping Price Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 4.43, a current ratio of 4.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16. The company has a market capitalization of $615.85 million, a PE ratio of 11.36 and a beta of 0.04. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $17.26 and its 200 day simple moving average is $14.84.

Ardmore Shipping (NYSE:ASC) last released its earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The shipping company reported $0.58 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.51 by $0.07. Ardmore Shipping had a net margin of 18.00% and a return on equity of 9.63%. The firm had revenue of $87.92 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $58.08 million.

Ardmore Shipping Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 12th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 29th were paid a $0.39 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 29th. This is an increase from Ardmore Shipping’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.09. This represents a $1.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 10.3%. Ardmore Shipping’s payout ratio is 117.29%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Curtis B. Mcwilliams sold 16,277 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, May 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $19.38, for a total transaction of $315,448.26. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 60,673 shares in the company, valued at $1,175,842.74. The trade was a 21.15% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, President Bart B. Kelleher sold 8,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $19.07, for a total transaction of $152,560.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the president directly owned 60,039 shares in the company, valued at $1,144,943.73. This represents a 11.76% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 40,000 shares of company stock valued at $766,048.

Institutional Trading of Ardmore Shipping

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of ASC. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT purchased a new stake in shares of Ardmore Shipping during the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in Ardmore Shipping during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $38,000. Ameriflex Group Inc. purchased a new stake in Ardmore Shipping in the third quarter valued at $59,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Ardmore Shipping by 1,689.0% in the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 8,444 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $81,000 after acquiring an additional 7,972 shares during the period. Finally, Tower Research Capital LLC TRC lifted its stake in shares of Ardmore Shipping by 536.3% in the 2nd quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 8,737 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $84,000 after purchasing an additional 7,364 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 62.22% of the company’s stock.

Ardmore Shipping Company Profile

Ardmore Shipping Corporation is a Bermuda-based provider of seaborne transportation services for refined petroleum products. The company owns and operates a modern fleet of product tankers, including medium-range (MR), long-range 2 (LR2) and Aframax vessels. Ardmore Shipping focuses on the ocean carriage of clean and dirty petroleum products under time charters, bareboat charters and spot voyages, serving a diverse customer base that includes major oil companies and trading houses.

Since its founding in 2005, Ardmore Shipping has grown its fleet through newbuilding contracts, second-hand acquisitions and fleet renewals, aiming to maintain a high quality, fuel-efficient profile.