Koert Erhardt Purchases 6,000 Shares of Star Bulk Carriers (NASDAQ:SBLK) Stock

Star Bulk Carriers Corp. (NASDAQ:SBLK) Director Koert Erhardt acquired 6,000 shares of Star Bulk Carriers stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 15th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $28.27 per share, with a total value of $169,620.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director owned 16,080 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $454,581.60. This trade represents a 59.52% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website.

Star Bulk Carriers Stock Performance

Shares of SBLK traded down $0.23 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $30.98. The stock had a trading volume of 1,063,858 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,427,213. The firm has a market cap of $3.51 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.15 and a beta of 0.70. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $28.97 and a 200-day moving average price of $26.54. 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 Corp. has a 52 week low of $16.72 and a 52 week high of $32.88.

Star Bulk Carriers (NASDAQ:SBLK) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The shipping company reported $1.21 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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. On average, equities research analysts expect that Star Bulk Carriers Corp. will post 4.32 EPS for the current year.

Star Bulk Carriers Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 3rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 21st were given a dividend of $0.90 per share. This is a boost from Star Bulk Carriers’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. This represents a $3.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 11.6%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 21st. Star Bulk Carriers’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 141.18%.

Trending Headlines about Star Bulk Carriers

Here are the key news stories impacting Star Bulk Carriers this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Insiders bought shares: CFO Symeon Spyrou purchased 15,000 shares for approximately $424,050, while directors Koert Erhardt and Nikolaos Karellis bought 6,000 and 2,000 shares, respectively. The purchases increase their ownership and may signal confidence in SBLK’s valuation and outlook. CFO insider purchase filing
• Positive Sentiment: Zacks upgraded SBLK’s standing: Star Bulk was added to the Zacks Rank #1, or “Strong Buy,” list and to its Strong Buy income-stock list. The ratings may support investor interest, particularly among dividend-focused investors. Zacks Strong Buy stocks
• Neutral Sentiment: Euronext Athens listing completed: SBLK listed its common shares on Euronext Athens and announced the opening price for all 116,071,386 outstanding shares. The listing could broaden access to Greek and European investors, although its immediate effect on fundamentals is limited. Euronext listing announcement
• Negative Sentiment: Public offering creates dilution concerns: Star Bulk raised approximately €107.8 million through a Greek public offering of new common shares. The additional liquidity may support corporate purposes, but issuing new shares can dilute existing shareholders and pressure the stock in the near term. Star Bulk Euronext Athens offering

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently issued reports on SBLK. Zacks Research raised shares of Star Bulk Carriers from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, August 14th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a “buy” rating and set a $32.00 price objective on shares of Star Bulk Carriers in a report on Friday, May 22nd. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their target price on Star Bulk Carriers from $29.00 to $31.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, May 28th. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded Star Bulk Carriers from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 27th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and three have assigned a Buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $31.50.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Cooper Creek Partners Management LLC purchased a new position in Star Bulk Carriers during the first quarter worth about $19,893,000. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership purchased a new stake in shares of Star Bulk Carriers in the 1st quarter valued at about $17,398,000. Fearnley Asset Management AS bought a new stake in shares of Star Bulk Carriers during the 4th quarter valued at about $11,096,000. Renaissance Technologies LLC grew its holdings in shares of Star Bulk Carriers by 13.0% during the first quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 2,067,637 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $47,494,000 after purchasing an additional 237,248 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Counterpoint Mutual Funds LLC purchased a new position in shares of Star Bulk Carriers during the first quarter worth about $4,788,000. Institutional investors own 33.91% of the company’s stock.

Star Bulk Carriers Company Profile

Star Bulk Carriers Corp. is a global dry bulk shipping company that owns and operates vessels used to transport major and minor bulk commodities. Its fleet serves the international supply chains for iron ore, grain, bauxite, fertilizers, steel products and other dry cargoes.

The company operates a diversified fleet that includes large Capesize and Newcastlemax vessels as well as Panamax, Ultramax and Supramax bulk carriers. Star Bulk’s vessels serve customers and ports across major shipping routes worldwide, supporting commodity trade between producers, exporters and end markets.

Star Bulk Carriers was founded in 2006 and is headquartered in Maroussi, Greece, with the company incorporated in the Marshall Islands.