Insider Selling: Star Bulk Carriers (NASDAQ:SBLK) COO Sells $144,950.00 in Stock

Star Bulk Carriers Corp. (NASDAQ:SBLK) COO Nikolaos Reskos sold 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $28.99, for a total transaction of $144,950.00. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 405,875 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,766,316.25. This represents a 1.22% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan.

Nikolaos Reskos also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Monday, June 1st, Nikolaos Reskos sold 5,000 shares of Star Bulk Carriers stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $28.49, for a total transaction of $142,450.00.
• On Thursday, May 21st, Nikolaos Reskos sold 30,000 shares of Star Bulk Carriers stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $27.29, for a total value of $818,700.00.
• On Wednesday, May 20th, Nikolaos Reskos sold 9,914 shares of Star Bulk Carriers stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $26.55, for a total transaction of $263,216.70.
• On Monday, May 18th, Nikolaos Reskos sold 33,103 shares of Star Bulk Carriers stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $26.28, for a total value of $869,946.84.
• On Tuesday, May 19th, Nikolaos Reskos sold 86 shares of Star Bulk Carriers stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $26.49, for a total value of $2,278.14.

Star Bulk Carriers Price Performance

SBLK opened at $28.75 on Monday. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $26.59 and a 200 day simple moving average of $24.89. The company has a current ratio of 1.73, a quick ratio of 1.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. The firm has a market cap of $3.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.00 and a beta of 0.72. Star Bulk Carriers Corp. has a twelve month low of $16.72 and a twelve month high of $29.34.

Star Bulk Carriers Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 22nd. Investors of record on Friday, June 12th were paid a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 7.0%. This is a positive change from Star Bulk Carriers’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.37. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 12th. Star Bulk Carriers’s payout ratio is 160.00%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Star Bulk Carriers

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio grew its position in shares of Star Bulk Carriers by 10.3% during the fourth quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio now owns 4,536 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $87,000 after acquiring an additional 422 shares during the last quarter. Magnetar Financial LLC lifted its position in Star Bulk Carriers by 3.1% in the 4th quarter. Magnetar Financial LLC now owns 20,001 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $384,000 after purchasing an additional 604 shares during the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets boosted its stake in Star Bulk Carriers by 4.7% during the 2nd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 13,695 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $236,000 after purchasing an additional 616 shares during the period. Vident Advisory LLC boosted its stake in Star Bulk Carriers by 5.6% during the 3rd quarter. Vident Advisory LLC now owns 16,902 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $314,000 after purchasing an additional 891 shares during the period. Finally, Commonwealth Equity Services LLC grew its position in Star Bulk Carriers by 8.6% in the 4th quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 12,399 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $238,000 after purchasing an additional 983 shares during the last quarter. 33.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

SBLK has been the topic of several research reports. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Star Bulk Carriers in a research report on Wednesday, June 24th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Star Bulk Carriers from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Saturday, April 18th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on shares of Star Bulk Carriers from $29.00 to $31.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 28th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $32.00 price target on shares of Star Bulk Carriers in a report on Friday, May 22nd. Finally, Zacks Research downgraded shares of Star Bulk Carriers from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, June 22nd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Star Bulk Carriers has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $31.50.

About Star Bulk Carriers

Star Bulk Carriers Corp is a global shipping company engaged in the ocean transport of dry bulk commodities. The company owns and operates a diversified fleet of bulk carriers, including Handymax, Supramax, Panamax and Capesize vessels. Its ships are designed to carry a broad range of cargoes, such as iron ore, coal, grain, bauxite and phosphate, catering to industrial and agricultural customers worldwide.

The company’s vessels operate on major trade routes across the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans, connecting producers and consumers in Asia, Europe, North and South America.