Private Management Group Inc. Has $14.97 Million Holdings in Ardmore Shipping Corporation $ASC

Private Management Group Inc. cut its holdings in shares of Ardmore Shipping Corporation (NYSE:ASC) by 12.0% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 1,068,350 shares of the shipping company’s stock after selling 145,463 shares during the period. Private Management Group Inc. owned about 2.62% of Ardmore Shipping worth $14,968,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. LSV Asset Management acquired a new position in Ardmore Shipping in the fourth quarter worth $618,000. Segall Bryant & Hamill LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Ardmore Shipping in the first quarter valued at $1,033,000. Flat Footed LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Ardmore Shipping in the second quarter valued at $13,293,599. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of Ardmore Shipping in the second quarter valued at $7,615,000. Finally, Marnell Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Ardmore Shipping in the fourth quarter valued at about $3,877,000. 62.22% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Ardmore Shipping Stock Down 1.9%

Shares of ASC opened at $17.33 on Friday. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $16.54 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $16.32. The firm has a market capitalization of $705.87 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.69 and a beta of 0.03. Ardmore Shipping Corporation has a 52 week low of $10.31 and a 52 week high of $20.02. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05, a quick ratio of 4.84 and a current ratio of 5.45.

Ardmore Shipping (NYSE:ASC) last released its earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The shipping company reported $1.18 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.11 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $116.21 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $86.30 million. Ardmore Shipping had a return on equity of 15.24% and a net margin of 29.67%.

Ardmore Shipping Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 28th will be paid a $0.79 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 28th. This is a boost from Ardmore Shipping’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.39. This represents a $3.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 18.2%. Ardmore Shipping’s payout ratio is 122.01%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently issued reports on ASC shares. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Ardmore Shipping from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, August 1st. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Ardmore Shipping from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 19th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $17.00.

About Ardmore Shipping

Ardmore Shipping Corporation is a Bermuda-based provider of seaborne transportation services for refined petroleum products. The company owns and operates a modern fleet of product tankers, including medium-range (MR), long-range 2 (LR2) and Aframax vessels. Ardmore Shipping focuses on the ocean carriage of clean and dirty petroleum products under time charters, bareboat charters and spot voyages, serving a diverse customer base that includes major oil companies and trading houses.

Since its founding in 2005, Ardmore Shipping has grown its fleet through newbuilding contracts, second-hand acquisitions and fleet renewals, aiming to maintain a high quality, fuel-efficient profile.