Ardmore Shipping (NYSE:ASC) Share Price Passes Below 200 Day Moving Average – Time to Sell?

Ardmore Shipping Co. (NYSE:ASC)’s share price passed below its 200-day moving average during trading on Tuesday . The stock has a 200-day moving average of $17.24 and traded as low as $11.82. Ardmore Shipping shares last traded at $12.12, with a volume of 650,141 shares.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have commented on the stock. Fearnley Fonds raised shares of Ardmore Shipping to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, September 27th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their target price on Ardmore Shipping from $20.00 to $17.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, November 14th. StockNews.com lowered Ardmore Shipping from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 25th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lowered shares of Ardmore Shipping from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and cut their target price for the stock from $24.00 to $17.00 in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $20.00.

Ardmore Shipping Price Performance

The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $12.64 and a 200-day simple moving average of $17.13. The company has a market capitalization of $497.92 million, a PE ratio of 3.33 and a beta of 0.31. The company has a current ratio of 3.57, a quick ratio of 3.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03.

Ardmore Shipping Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 13th. Investors of record on Friday, November 29th were issued a $0.18 dividend. This represents a $0.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.05%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 29th. Ardmore Shipping’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 20.17%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of ASC. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its stake in Ardmore Shipping by 26.4% in the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 31,355 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $568,000 after acquiring an additional 6,553 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Ardmore Shipping by 3.0% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 44,482 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $769,000 after purchasing an additional 1,304 shares during the last quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Ardmore Shipping by 10.1% in the 3rd quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC now owns 22,204 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $402,000 after purchasing an additional 2,041 shares during the period. Barclays PLC grew its stake in Ardmore Shipping by 301.1% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 58,431 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $1,058,000 after buying an additional 43,862 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Invst LLC grew its stake in Ardmore Shipping by 15.3% during the 3rd quarter. Invst LLC now owns 38,688 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $700,000 after buying an additional 5,146 shares during the last quarter. 62.22% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Ardmore Shipping

Ardmore Shipping Corporation engages in the seaborne transportation of petroleum products and chemicals worldwide. The company's fleet consists of 22 owned vessels including 21 Eco-design and 1 Eco-mod vessel, and four chartered-in vessels. It serves oil majors, oil companies, oil and chemical traders, chemical companies, and pooling service providers.