Star Bulk Carriers (NASDAQ:SBLK) Director Sells 10,000 Shares

Key Points

• Director sale: Star Bulk Carriers director Mahesh Balakrishnan sold 10,000 shares for approximately $323,400, reducing his direct holdings by 25.59% to 29,080 shares.
• Financial performance and dividend: The company beat quarterly earnings expectations with EPS of $1.21 versus a $0.95 consensus estimate and raised its quarterly dividend to $0.90, implying an annualized yield of about 11.3%.
• Market outlook: SBLK shares were trading near $31.73 after declining 2.3%; analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus with a $31.50 average price target, while institutional investors own 33.91% of the stock.

Star Bulk Carriers Corp. (NASDAQ:SBLK - Get Free Report) Director Mahesh Balakrishnan sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $32.34, for a total value of $323,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 29,080 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $940,447.20. This represents a 25.59% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website.

Star Bulk Carriers Trading Down 2.3%

Shares of SBLK opened at $31.73 on Tuesday. Star Bulk Carriers Corp. has a 12-month low of $16.72 and a 12-month high of $32.88. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.60 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.44 and a beta of 0.70. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $29.40 and a 200 day moving average price of $26.70. The company has a current ratio of 1.91, a quick ratio of 1.74 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32.

Star Bulk Carriers (NASDAQ:SBLK - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The shipping company reported $1.21 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.95 by $0.26. Star Bulk Carriers had a net margin of 23.87% and a return on equity of 11.72%. The firm had revenue of $284.60 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $284.29 million. Sell-side analysts forecast that Star Bulk Carriers Corp. will post 4.32 EPS for the current year.

Star Bulk Carriers Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 3rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 21st were paid a $0.90 dividend. This is an increase from Star Bulk Carriers's previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. This represents a $3.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 11.3%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 21st. Star Bulk Carriers's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 141.18%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Zacks Research lowered Star Bulk Carriers from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Star Bulk Carriers from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "buy (b)" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 27th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price objective on shares of Star Bulk Carriers from $29.00 to $31.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 28th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $31.50.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Star Bulk Carriers

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Raiffeisen Bank International AG raised its holdings in shares of Star Bulk Carriers by 26.3% in the 2nd quarter. Raiffeisen Bank International AG now owns 66,429 shares of the shipping company's stock worth $1,659,000 after purchasing an additional 13,851 shares during the period. BTG Pactual Asset Management US LLC grew its holdings in Star Bulk Carriers by 3.9% during the 2nd quarter. BTG Pactual Asset Management US LLC now owns 53,570 shares of the shipping company's stock valued at $1,338,000 after purchasing an additional 1,986 shares in the last quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC increased its position in shares of Star Bulk Carriers by 0.8% during the second quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC now owns 66,333 shares of the shipping company's stock worth $1,656,000 after acquiring an additional 518 shares during the last quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio purchased a new stake in Star Bulk Carriers during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $1,371,000. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE grew its position in shares of Star Bulk Carriers by 48.5% during the first quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 565,562 shares of the shipping company's stock worth $12,991,000 after buying an additional 184,837 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 33.91% of the company's stock.

Star Bulk Carriers Company Profile

Star Bulk Carriers Corp. is a global dry bulk shipping company that owns and operates vessels used to transport major and minor bulk commodities. Its fleet serves the international supply chains for iron ore, grain, bauxite, fertilizers, steel products and other dry cargoes.

The company operates a diversified fleet that includes large Capesize and Newcastlemax vessels as well as Panamax, Ultramax and Supramax bulk carriers. Star Bulk's vessels serve customers and ports across major shipping routes worldwide, supporting commodity trade between producers, exporters and end markets.

Star Bulk Carriers was founded in 2006 and is headquartered in Maroussi, Greece, with the company incorporated in the Marshall Islands.

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