R Squared Ltd Acquires New Stake in Star Bulk Carriers Corp. $SBLK

R Squared Ltd bought a new stake in Star Bulk Carriers Corp. (NASDAQ:SBLK) during the first quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor bought 25,293 shares of the shipping company’s stock, valued at approximately $581,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. USA Financial Formulas bought a new stake in shares of Star Bulk Carriers during the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Triumph Capital Management bought a new position in shares of Star Bulk Carriers in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $26,000. Rhumbline Advisers lifted its stake in shares of Star Bulk Carriers by 141.7% in the 3rd quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 1,743 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 1,022 shares during the period. Sunbelt Securities Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Star Bulk Carriers in the third quarter worth approximately $33,000. Finally, Morse Asset Management Inc purchased a new position in shares of Star Bulk Carriers in the third quarter worth approximately $37,000. 33.91% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have weighed in on SBLK. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Star Bulk Carriers in a research report on Wednesday, June 24th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a “buy” rating and set a $32.00 price objective on shares of Star Bulk Carriers in a research report on Friday, May 22nd. Zacks Research lowered Star Bulk Carriers from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, June 22nd. Wall Street Zen raised Star Bulk Carriers from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Saturday, April 18th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group lifted their target price on Star Bulk Carriers from $29.00 to $31.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 28th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $31.50.

Star Bulk Carriers Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:SBLK traded up $0.14 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $26.25. 661,069 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,416,322. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $26.32 and its 200 day simple moving average is $23.88. The company has a market cap of $2.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.00 and a beta of 0.72. Star Bulk Carriers Corp. has a 52-week low of $16.72 and a 52-week high of $28.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 1.73 and a quick ratio of 1.55.

Star Bulk Carriers Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 22nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 12th were issued a dividend of $0.50 per share. This is an increase from Star Bulk Carriers’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.37. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 12th. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 7.6%. Star Bulk Carriers’s payout ratio is 160.00%.

Insider Activity at Star Bulk Carriers

In other news, COO Nikolaos Reskos sold 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, June 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $28.49, for a total value of $142,450.00. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 362,775 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,335,459.75. The trade was a 1.36% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Nikolaos Karellis sold 20,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $26.96, for a total transaction of $539,200.00. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 108,103 shares of company stock worth $2,886,212.

Star Bulk Carriers Profile

Star Bulk Carriers Corp is a global shipping company engaged in the ocean transport of dry bulk commodities. The company owns and operates a diversified fleet of bulk carriers, including Handymax, Supramax, Panamax and Capesize vessels. Its ships are designed to carry a broad range of cargoes, such as iron ore, coal, grain, bauxite and phosphate, catering to industrial and agricultural customers worldwide.

The company’s vessels operate on major trade routes across the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans, connecting producers and consumers in Asia, Europe, North and South America.