Mraz Amerine & Associates Inc. Acquires 28,010 Shares of Star Bulk Carriers Corp. (NASDAQ:SBLK)

Mraz Amerine & Associates Inc. boosted its stake in Star Bulk Carriers Corp. (NASDAQ:SBLK - Free Report) by 33.3% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 112,231 shares of the shipping company's stock after acquiring an additional 28,010 shares during the period. Mraz Amerine & Associates Inc. owned 0.10% of Star Bulk Carriers worth $1,793,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Pekin Hardy Strauss Inc. bought a new stake in Star Bulk Carriers in the first quarter valued at approximately $394,000. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. lifted its stake in Star Bulk Carriers by 64.0% in the first quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 55,439 shares of the shipping company's stock valued at $863,000 after buying an additional 21,631 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new position in Star Bulk Carriers in the first quarter valued at approximately $161,000. Aurora Private Wealth Inc. acquired a new position in Star Bulk Carriers in the first quarter valued at approximately $893,000. Finally, Rossby Financial LCC acquired a new position in Star Bulk Carriers in the first quarter valued at approximately $181,000. 33.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, Wall Street Zen raised Star Bulk Carriers from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $22.05.

Star Bulk Carriers Stock Up 2.8%

Shares of NASDAQ:SBLK traded up $0.50 during trading on Friday, reaching $18.52. 1,566,439 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,825,640. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42, a current ratio of 1.65 and a quick ratio of 1.47. Star Bulk Carriers Corp. has a 1-year low of $12.06 and a 1-year high of $24.51. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $16.67 and a two-hundred day moving average of $15.65. The firm has a market cap of $2.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.35 and a beta of 0.93.

Star Bulk Carriers (NASDAQ:SBLK - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 14th. The shipping company reported ($0.07) EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.28) by $0.21. The business had revenue of $159.28 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $162.57 million. Star Bulk Carriers had a return on equity of 8.20% and a net margin of 18.62%. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.87 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Star Bulk Carriers Corp. will post 1.74 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Star Bulk Carriers Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 20th. Investors of record on Friday, June 6th were given a $0.05 dividend. This represents a $0.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.08%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 6th. Star Bulk Carriers's payout ratio is currently 10.10%.

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.