Marshall Wace LLP Sells 513,186 Shares of Star Bulk Carriers Corp. (NASDAQ:SBLK)

Marshall Wace LLP lowered its position in Star Bulk Carriers Corp. (NASDAQ:SBLK - Free Report) by 52.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 464,836 shares of the shipping company's stock after selling 513,186 shares during the period. Marshall Wace LLP owned 0.55% of Star Bulk Carriers worth $6,949,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Barclays PLC lifted its stake in shares of Star Bulk Carriers by 7,313.4% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 455,254 shares of the shipping company's stock valued at $10,784,000 after buying an additional 449,113 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Star Bulk Carriers by 359.3% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 457,274 shares of the shipping company's stock worth $10,833,000 after purchasing an additional 357,720 shares during the last quarter. Adams Asset Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Star Bulk Carriers in the 4th quarter valued at about $1,495,000. Avior Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Star Bulk Carriers by 110.0% during the 4th quarter. Avior Wealth Management LLC now owns 13,947 shares of the shipping company's stock worth $209,000 after buying an additional 7,306 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. increased its position in shares of Star Bulk Carriers by 51.3% during the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 3,063 shares of the shipping company's stock valued at $46,000 after acquiring an additional 1,038 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 33.91% of the company's stock.

Star Bulk Carriers Price Performance

SBLK traded down $0.01 on Tuesday, reaching $14.63. The company had a trading volume of 228,359 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,849,460. Star Bulk Carriers Corp. has a 52-week low of $12.06 and a 52-week high of $27.47. The company has a market cap of $1.72 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 5.11 and a beta of 0.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42, a quick ratio of 1.50 and a current ratio of 1.65. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $15.08 and a 200 day simple moving average of $16.25.

Star Bulk Carriers (NASDAQ:SBLK - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 18th. The shipping company reported $0.34 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.42 by ($0.08). The firm had revenue of $308.92 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $230.91 million. Star Bulk Carriers had a net margin of 24.08% and a return on equity of 12.48%. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Star Bulk Carriers Corp. will post 1.74 EPS for the current year.

Star Bulk Carriers Cuts Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 18th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 4th were paid a $0.09 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 4th. This represents a $0.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.46%. Star Bulk Carriers's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 12.54%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

SBLK has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their target price on shares of Star Bulk Carriers from $22.00 to $21.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Star Bulk Carriers from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Star Bulk Carriers currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $22.05.

Star Bulk Carriers Profile

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.