Star Bulk Carriers (NASDAQ:SBLK) Downgraded to “Sell” Rating by Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Star Bulk Carriers (NASDAQ:SBLK) from a hold rating to a sell rating in a research note published on Sunday morning.

Star Bulk Carriers Stock Down 2.0%

SBLK stock opened at $16.47 on Friday. The company’s 50 day moving average is $15.66 and its two-hundred day moving average is $15.42. Star Bulk Carriers has a twelve month low of $12.06 and a twelve month high of $25.25. The company has a current ratio of 1.65, a quick ratio of 1.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42. The stock has a market cap of $1.94 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.32 and a beta of 0.95.

Star Bulk Carriers (NASDAQ:SBLK) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 14th. The shipping company reported ($0.07) earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.28) by $0.21. The business had revenue of $159.28 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $162.57 million. Star Bulk Carriers had a return on equity of 8.20% and a net margin of 18.62%. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.87 earnings per share. Research analysts expect that Star Bulk Carriers will post 1.74 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Star Bulk Carriers Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 6th were given a dividend of $0.05 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 6th. This represents a $0.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.21%. Star Bulk Carriers’s payout ratio is 10.10%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Star Bulk Carriers

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Amundi lifted its stake in shares of Star Bulk Carriers by 59.1% in the 1st quarter. Amundi now owns 1,868,249 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $26,548,000 after acquiring an additional 693,683 shares during the period. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. purchased a new position in Star Bulk Carriers during the first quarter worth about $10,734,000. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC raised its holdings in Star Bulk Carriers by 59.7% during the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 1,298,436 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $20,204,000 after purchasing an additional 485,436 shares in the last quarter. Praetorian PR LLC acquired a new stake in Star Bulk Carriers in the fourth quarter valued at about $6,267,000. Finally, Focus Partners Wealth boosted its holdings in Star Bulk Carriers by 56.0% in the 1st quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 938,208 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $14,599,000 after purchasing an additional 336,873 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 33.91% of the company’s stock.

Star Bulk Carriers Company Profile

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.