Star Bulk Carriers Corp. (NASDAQ:SBLK) Sees Large Growth in Short Interest

Star Bulk Carriers Corp. (NASDAQ:SBLK) was the recipient of a large increase in short interest in the month of September. As of September 15th, there was short interest totaling 2,708,879 shares, an increase of 61.4% from the August 31st total of 1,678,864 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 1,710,656 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 1.6 days. Approximately 2.4% of the shares of the company are short sold.

Star Bulk Carriers Stock Performance

Shares of SBLK stock opened at $30.43 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.45 billion, a PE ratio of 11.93, a PEG ratio of 0.12 and a beta of 0.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 1.91 and a quick ratio of 1.74. Star Bulk Carriers has a one year low of $16.72 and a one year high of $32.88. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $29.97 and its 200 day simple moving average is $27.06.

Star Bulk Carriers (NASDAQ:SBLK) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The shipping company reported $1.21 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.95 by $0.26. Star Bulk Carriers had a return on equity of 11.72% and a net margin of 23.87%.The company had revenue of $284.60 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $284.29 million. As a group, research analysts forecast that Star Bulk Carriers will post 4.38 earnings per share for the current year.

Star Bulk Carriers Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 3rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 21st were given a dividend of $0.90 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 21st. This represents a $3.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 11.8%. This is an increase from Star Bulk Carriers’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. Star Bulk Carriers’s payout ratio is currently 141.18%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Star Bulk Carriers from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 27th. Zacks Research cut Star Bulk Carriers from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, September 18th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $31.50.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Charis Plakantonaki acquired 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 15th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $28.27 per share, for a total transaction of $84,810.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 58,778 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,661,654.06. This trade represents a 5.38% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, COO Nikolaos Rescos acquired 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 15th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $28.27 per share, for a total transaction of $282,700.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief operating officer directly owned 410,875 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,615,436.25. This represents a 2.49% increase in their position. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last quarter, insiders have purchased 170,400 shares of company stock valued at $4,817,208 and have sold 95,150 shares valued at $2,924,455. Corporate insiders own 0.90% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Star Bulk Carriers

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of SBLK. Raiffeisen Bank International AG boosted its holdings in shares of Star Bulk Carriers by 26.3% in the 2nd quarter. Raiffeisen Bank International AG now owns 66,429 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $1,659,000 after purchasing an additional 13,851 shares in the last quarter. BTG Pactual Asset Management US LLC raised its holdings in Star Bulk Carriers by 3.9% during the 2nd quarter. BTG Pactual Asset Management US LLC now owns 53,570 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $1,338,000 after buying an additional 1,986 shares during the last quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC raised its stake in shares of Star Bulk Carriers by 0.8% during the second quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC now owns 66,333 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $1,656,000 after acquiring an additional 518 shares during the last quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio purchased a new position in shares of Star Bulk Carriers during the second quarter valued at approximately $1,371,000. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE raised its holdings in Star Bulk Carriers by 48.5% in the 1st quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 565,562 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $12,991,000 after purchasing an additional 184,837 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 33.91% of the company’s stock.

About Star Bulk Carriers

Star Bulk Carriers Corp. (NASDAQ:SBLK) is a global dry bulk shipping company that owns and operates vessels used to transport major and minor bulk commodities. Its cargoes include iron ore, grains, bauxite, fertilizers, steel products and other raw materials.

The company operates a diversified fleet of dry bulk carriers, including Capesize, Panamax, Ultramax and Supramax vessels. These ships serve international trade routes and transport commodities between producers, exporters and industrial customers across major global markets.

Star Bulk was founded in 2006 and is headquartered in Maroussi, Greece.