Star Bulk Carriers Corp. (NASDAQ:SBLK) Short Interest Update

Star Bulk Carriers Corp. (NASDAQ:SBLK) was the recipient of a significant drop in short interest in July. As of July 15th, there was short interest totaling 1,081,406 shares, a drop of 34.0% from the June 30th total of 1,639,559 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 1,118,968 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 1.0 days. Currently, 1.0% of the shares of the stock are short sold.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Star Bulk Carriers news, Director Nikolaos Karellis sold 20,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $26.96, for a total transaction of $539,200.00. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, COO Nikolaos Reskos sold 5,000 shares of the 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 completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 362,775 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,335,459.75. The trade was a 1.36% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold 98,103 shares of company stock worth $2,635,792 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.90% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Star Bulk Carriers

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Bank of America Corp DE raised its stake in shares of Star Bulk Carriers by 48.5% in the first quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 565,562 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $12,991,000 after buying an additional 184,837 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC bought a new stake in shares of Star Bulk Carriers in the first quarter valued at approximately $403,000. Cooper Creek Partners Management LLC bought a new position in Star Bulk Carriers in the 1st quarter worth approximately $19,893,000. Entropy Technologies LP bought a new stake in Star Bulk Carriers during the 1st quarter valued at $437,000. Finally, Renaissance Technologies LLC lifted its position in shares of Star Bulk Carriers by 13.0% during the first quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 2,067,637 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $47,494,000 after acquiring an additional 237,248 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 33.91% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

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

Star Bulk Carriers Stock Up 6.4%

Shares of NASDAQ:SBLK opened at $29.15 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.55, a current ratio of 1.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. The stock has a market cap of $3.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.32 and a beta of 0.72. The business’s 50 day moving average is $26.54 and its 200 day moving average is $24.82. Star Bulk Carriers has a 12-month low of $16.72 and a 12-month high of $29.17.

Star Bulk Carriers Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 22nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 12th were paid a $0.50 dividend. This is a boost from Star Bulk Carriers’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.37. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 12th. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.9%. Star Bulk Carriers’s dividend payout ratio is currently 160.00%.

Star Bulk Carriers Company 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.