Star Bulk Carriers (NASDAQ:SBLK) Research Coverage Started at Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft

Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft started coverage on shares of Star Bulk Carriers (NASDAQ:SBLK) in a report published on Wednesday morning, Benzinga reports. The firm issued a buy rating and a $26.00 target price on the shipping company’s stock.

A number of other research firms also recently issued reports on SBLK. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price target on Star Bulk Carriers from $28.00 to $32.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research report on Friday, May 24th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Star Bulk Carriers from a hold rating to a buy rating in a report on Friday, May 24th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group restated a buy rating and issued a $30.00 price target on shares of Star Bulk Carriers in a report on Thursday, May 23rd.

Star Bulk Carriers Price Performance

Star Bulk Carriers stock opened at $19.87 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48, a current ratio of 1.51 and a quick ratio of 1.34. The stock has a market cap of $1.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.95 and a beta of 0.97. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $22.39 and a two-hundred day moving average of $23.83. Star Bulk Carriers has a 1 year low of $17.12 and a 1 year high of $27.47.

Star Bulk Carriers (NASDAQ:SBLK) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 7th. The shipping company reported $0.78 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.79 by ($0.01). Star Bulk Carriers had a net margin of 24.05% and a return on equity of 13.58%. The firm had revenue of $352.88 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $329.38 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.47 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that Star Bulk Carriers will post 3.47 earnings per share for the current year.

Star Bulk Carriers Cuts Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 6th. Investors of record on Tuesday, August 27th were paid a dividend of $0.70 per share. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 14.09%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, August 27th. Star Bulk Carriers’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 126.13%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Star Bulk Carriers

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Star Bulk Carriers during the second quarter valued at about $32,000. VisionPoint Advisory Group LLC purchased a new stake in Star Bulk Carriers during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Atlas Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Star Bulk Carriers during the first quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Principal Securities Inc. acquired a new stake in Star Bulk Carriers in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $40,000. Finally, FinTrust Capital Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Star Bulk Carriers by 100.0% in the first quarter. FinTrust Capital Advisors LLC now owns 2,000 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $48,000 after purchasing an additional 1,000 shares during 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., a shipping company, engages in the ocean transportation of dry bulk cargoes worldwide. Its vessels transport a range of bulk commodities, including iron ores, minerals and grains, bauxite, fertilizers, and steel products. As of December 31, 2023, the company owned a fleet of 116 dry bulk vessels with combined carrying capacity of 13.1 million deadweight tonnage (dwt) consisting of Newcastlemax, Capesize, Post Panamax, Kamsarmax, Panamax, Ultramax, and Supramax vessels with carrying capacities between 53,489 dwt and 209,537 dwt.