Boston Partners Sells 33,516 Shares of Star Bulk Carriers Corp. $SBLK

Key Points

• Boston Partners has reduced its stake in Star Bulk Carriers Corp. by 21.1%, selling 33,516 shares, leaving it with approximately 125,368 shares valued at about $1.95 million.
• Several hedge funds, including Encompass Capital Advisors LLC and Grand Alliance Asset Management Ltd, have increased their holdings in Star Bulk Carriers, indicating strong institutional interest.
• Star Bulk Carriers recently declared a $0.05 quarterly dividend with an annual yield of 1.1%, reflecting a payout ratio of 19.05%.

Boston Partners trimmed its holdings in shares of Star Bulk Carriers Corp. (NASDAQ:SBLK - Free Report) by 21.1% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 125,368 shares of the shipping company's stock after selling 33,516 shares during the period. Boston Partners owned approximately 0.11% of Star Bulk Carriers worth $1,951,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Sowell Financial Services LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Star Bulk Carriers by 2.4% in the 1st quarter. Sowell Financial Services LLC now owns 61,909 shares of the shipping company's stock worth $963,000 after purchasing an additional 1,466 shares in the last quarter. Sigma Planning Corp lifted its stake in Star Bulk Carriers by 6.8% during the 1st quarter. Sigma Planning Corp now owns 24,009 shares of the shipping company's stock valued at $374,000 after acquiring an additional 1,527 shares in the last quarter. Capital Analysts LLC lifted its stake in Star Bulk Carriers by 215.9% during the 4th quarter. Capital Analysts LLC now owns 2,284 shares of the shipping company's stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 1,561 shares in the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its stake in Star Bulk Carriers by 5.9% during the 1st quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 33,440 shares of the shipping company's stock valued at $520,000 after acquiring an additional 1,875 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mountain Hill Investment Partners Corp. lifted its stake in Star Bulk Carriers by 66.7% during the 1st quarter. Mountain Hill Investment Partners Corp. now owns 5,000 shares of the shipping company's stock valued at $78,000 after acquiring an additional 2,000 shares in the last quarter. 33.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on SBLK shares. Wall Street Zen raised Star Bulk Carriers from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Sunday, August 10th. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $22.00 target price on shares of Star Bulk Carriers in a research report on Thursday, August 7th. Finally, Zacks Research raised Star Bulk Carriers from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, August 15th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $22.30.

Star Bulk Carriers Price Performance

NASDAQ SBLK traded up $0.24 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $19.22. The company had a trading volume of 372,141 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,696,569. Star Bulk Carriers Corp. has a 52 week low of $12.06 and a 52 week high of $23.82. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $18.14 and a 200 day simple moving average of $16.40. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40, a quick ratio of 1.42 and a current ratio of 1.61. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.34 and a beta of 0.94.

Star Bulk Carriers Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 10th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 28th will be given a dividend of $0.05 per share. This represents a $0.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 28th. Star Bulk Carriers's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 19.05%.

About Star Bulk Carriers

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.