Star Bulk Carriers (NASDAQ:SBLK) Reaches New 1-Year Low – Here’s What Happened

Star Bulk Carriers Corp. (NASDAQ:SBLK)’s stock price reached a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as low as $14.37 and last traded at $14.59, with a volume of 327249 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $14.82.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on SBLK. Stifel Nicolaus cut Star Bulk Carriers from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and reduced their price target for the company from $30.00 to $21.00 in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. StockNews.com raised Star Bulk Carriers from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, December 20th. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $28.00 price target on shares of Star Bulk Carriers in a report on Wednesday, November 20th. Finally, DNB Markets raised shares of Star Bulk Carriers from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $19.30 to $20.20 in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $23.80.

Star Bulk Carriers Stock Performance

The firm has a market cap of $1.25 billion, a PE ratio of 5.02, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.95 and a beta of 0.98. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $17.01 and a 200-day simple moving average of $20.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44, a current ratio of 1.69 and a quick ratio of 1.50.

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 given a $0.60 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, December 5th. This represents a $2.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 16.15%. Star Bulk Carriers’s payout ratio is currently 81.08%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of SBLK. Victory Capital Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Star Bulk Carriers during the second quarter valued at approximately $575,000. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Star Bulk Carriers in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $1,192,000. Headlands Technologies LLC purchased a new position in shares of Star Bulk Carriers in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $862,000. American Century Companies Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Star Bulk Carriers during the second quarter valued at approximately $11,719,000. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP bought a new position in Star Bulk Carriers in the second quarter worth $9,810,000. 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.