Star Bulk Carriers (NASDAQ:SBLK) Downgraded by StockNews.com to “Hold”

StockNews.com lowered shares of Star Bulk Carriers (NASDAQ:SBLK) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research note released on Thursday morning.

Several other brokerages have also weighed in on SBLK. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $28.00 price objective on shares of Star Bulk Carriers in a report on Wednesday, November 20th. DNB Markets upgraded Star Bulk Carriers from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $19.30 to $20.20 in a report on Thursday, November 21st. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus cut Star Bulk Carriers from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and reduced their price objective for the company from $30.00 to $21.00 in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $23.80.

Star Bulk Carriers Stock Up 3.4 %

Star Bulk Carriers stock opened at $14.84 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $1.25 billion, a PE ratio of 5.01, a PEG ratio of 4.40 and a beta of 0.98. Star Bulk Carriers has a 12-month low of $14.30 and a 12-month high of $27.47. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $16.13 and its 200 day moving average is $19.60. The company has a quick ratio of 1.50, a current ratio of 1.69 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44.

Star Bulk Carriers Cuts Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, December 18th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, December 5th were paid a dividend of $0.60 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, December 5th. This represents a $2.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 16.17%. Star Bulk Carriers’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 81.08%.

Institutional Trading of Star Bulk Carriers

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of SBLK. Blue Trust Inc. grew its holdings in Star Bulk Carriers by 51.3% during the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 3,063 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $46,000 after buying an additional 1,038 shares in the last quarter. Avior Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in Star Bulk Carriers by 110.0% during the 4th quarter. Avior Wealth Management LLC now owns 13,947 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $209,000 after acquiring an additional 7,306 shares during the last quarter. Adams Asset Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Star Bulk Carriers in the 4th quarter worth $1,495,000. Sunbelt Securities Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Star Bulk Carriers in the third quarter valued at about $57,000. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Star Bulk Carriers by 359.3% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 457,274 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $10,833,000 after purchasing an additional 357,720 shares in the last quarter. 33.91% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.