Ardmore Shipping Corporation (NYSE:ASC) Short Interest Up 53.8% in May

Ardmore Shipping Corporation (NYSE:ASC - Get Free Report) was the target of a significant increase in short interest in the month of May. As of May 31st, there was short interest totalling 3,260,000 shares, an increase of 53.8% from the May 15th total of 2,120,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 583,400 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 5.6 days. Currently, 8.0% of the company's shares are short sold.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently commented on the company. Fearnley Fonds upgraded Ardmore Shipping from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. Evercore ISI lowered their price target on Ardmore Shipping from $14.00 to $13.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Ardmore Shipping presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $13.67.

Ardmore Shipping Stock Up 0.4%

Shares of NYSE ASC traded up $0.04 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $10.54. The company had a trading volume of 706,831 shares, compared to its average volume of 676,643. The company has a market capitalization of $428.26 million, a PE ratio of 4.62 and a beta of 0.01. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a current ratio of 3.73 and a quick ratio of 3.36. Ardmore Shipping has a 1-year low of $8.32 and a 1-year high of $23.16. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $9.63 and its 200 day simple moving average is $10.50.

Ardmore Shipping (NYSE:ASC - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 7th. The shipping company reported $0.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.15 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $74.00 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $43.04 million. Ardmore Shipping had a net margin of 26.78% and a return on equity of 14.77%. The firm's revenue was down 30.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.92 earnings per share. On average, analysts predict that Ardmore Shipping will post 1.06 earnings per share for the current year.

Ardmore Shipping Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 13th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 2nd were paid a $0.05 dividend. This represents a dividend yield of 2.05%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 30th. Ardmore Shipping's payout ratio is currently 8.77%.

Institutional Trading of Ardmore Shipping

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of ASC. Ameriprise Financial Inc. raised its stake in shares of Ardmore Shipping by 1,647.3% in the fourth quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 670,993 shares of the shipping company's stock valued at $8,153,000 after acquiring an additional 632,592 shares in the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in Ardmore Shipping in the first quarter valued at $4,683,000. Victory Capital Management Inc. raised its stake in Ardmore Shipping by 255.4% in the fourth quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 465,777 shares of the shipping company's stock valued at $5,659,000 after buying an additional 334,704 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its stake in Ardmore Shipping by 24.6% in the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 1,413,554 shares of the shipping company's stock valued at $17,175,000 after buying an additional 279,403 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Squarepoint Ops LLC acquired a new stake in Ardmore Shipping in the fourth quarter valued at $2,631,000. 62.22% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Ardmore Shipping Company Profile

Ardmore Shipping Corporation engages in the seaborne transportation of petroleum products and chemicals worldwide. The company's fleet consists of 22 owned vessels including 21 Eco-design and 1 Eco-mod vessel, and four chartered-in vessels. It serves oil majors, oil companies, oil and chemical traders, chemical companies, and pooling service providers.