Star Bulk Carriers (NASDAQ:SBLK) Reaches New 1-Year Low – Should You Sell?

Shares of Star Bulk Carriers Corp. (NASDAQ:SBLK) hit a new 52-week low on Wednesday . The company traded as low as $14.31 and last traded at $14.49, with a volume of 353088 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $14.68.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

SBLK has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $28.00 price objective on shares of Star Bulk Carriers in a research report on Wednesday, November 20th. StockNews.com upgraded Star Bulk Carriers from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, December 20th. Stifel Nicolaus downgraded shares of Star Bulk Carriers from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and decreased their target price for the stock from $30.00 to $21.00 in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, DNB Markets raised Star Bulk Carriers from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $19.30 to $20.20 in a report on Thursday, November 21st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Star Bulk Carriers has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $23.80.

Star Bulk Carriers Price Performance

The stock has a market cap of $1.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 4.92, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.40 and a beta of 0.98. The company has a quick ratio of 1.50, a current ratio of 1.69 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44. The company’s 50-day moving average is $16.25 and its 200-day moving average is $19.64.

Star Bulk Carriers Cuts Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, December 18th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, December 5th were issued a dividend of $0.60 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, December 5th. This represents a $2.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 16.48%. Star Bulk Carriers’s payout ratio is presently 81.08%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of SBLK. FMR LLC lifted its holdings in Star Bulk Carriers by 229.6% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 404,196 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $9,575,000 after buying an additional 281,552 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Star Bulk Carriers by 359.3% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 457,274 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $10,833,000 after buying an additional 357,720 shares in the last quarter. Barclays PLC grew its stake in Star Bulk Carriers by 7,313.4% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 455,254 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $10,784,000 after acquiring an additional 449,113 shares during the period. Autumn Glory Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Star Bulk Carriers in the third quarter worth about $649,000. Finally, Benson Investment Management Company Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Star Bulk Carriers during the third quarter worth about $5,259,000. 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.