Ardmore Shipping (NYSE:ASC) Stock Price Down 5% – Here’s What Happened

Ardmore Shipping Corporation (NYSE:ASC)’s stock price was down 5% during trading on Thursday . The stock traded as low as $15.19 and last traded at $15.1940. 74,227 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 89% from the average session volume of 698,656 shares. The stock had previously closed at $15.99.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

ASC has been the topic of a number of research reports. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Ardmore Shipping from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Saturday, May 9th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Ardmore Shipping in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, Evercore set a $19.00 price objective on shares of Ardmore Shipping in a research note on Tuesday, April 21st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Ardmore Shipping currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $17.00.

Ardmore Shipping Stock Performance

The stock has a 50 day moving average of $17.16 and a 200 day moving average of $14.98. The company has a market capitalization of $609.93 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.27 and a beta of 0.04. The company has a quick ratio of 4.43, a current ratio of 4.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16.

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

Ardmore Shipping Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 12th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 29th were given a dividend of $0.39 per share. This represents a $1.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 10.4%. This is a boost from Ardmore Shipping’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.09. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 29th. Ardmore Shipping’s dividend payout ratio is currently 117.29%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Kirsi Tikka sold 12,000 shares of Ardmore Shipping stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $18.93, for a total value of $227,160.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 35,471 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $671,466.03. This trade represents a 25.28% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, President Bart B. Kelleher sold 8,000 shares of Ardmore Shipping stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $19.07, for a total value of $152,560.00. Following the completion of the sale, the president owned 60,039 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,144,943.73. The trade was a 11.76% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 40,000 shares of company stock worth $766,048.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ardmore Shipping

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT bought a new stake in Ardmore Shipping during the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Ardmore Shipping in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $38,000. Ameriflex Group Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Ardmore Shipping in the third quarter valued at $59,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake in Ardmore Shipping by 1,689.0% in the 2nd 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% during the 2nd quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 8,737 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $84,000 after buying an additional 7,364 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 62.22% of the company’s stock.

About Ardmore Shipping

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.