Stifel Financial Corp Has $2.67 Million Stake in Star Bulk Carriers Corp. (NASDAQ:SBLK)

Stifel Financial Corp lessened its stake in Star Bulk Carriers Corp. (NASDAQ:SBLK - Free Report) by 73.9% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 178,712 shares of the shipping company's stock after selling 506,341 shares during the quarter. Stifel Financial Corp owned approximately 0.21% of Star Bulk Carriers worth $2,672,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Sowell Financial Services LLC bought a new position in shares of Star Bulk Carriers in the fourth quarter worth approximately $904,000. Barclays PLC grew its stake in Star Bulk Carriers by 7,313.4% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 455,254 shares of the shipping company's stock worth $10,784,000 after purchasing an additional 449,113 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Star Bulk Carriers by 1,458.8% during the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 31,565 shares of the shipping company's stock valued at $472,000 after acquiring an additional 29,540 shares in the last quarter. Mariner LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Star Bulk Carriers by 290.6% during the 4th quarter. Mariner LLC now owns 48,637 shares of the shipping company's stock valued at $727,000 after acquiring an additional 36,186 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Handelsbanken Fonder AB lifted its stake in shares of Star Bulk Carriers by 23.4% in the 4th quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 19,082 shares of the shipping company's stock worth $285,000 after purchasing an additional 3,616 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 33.91% of the company's stock.

Star Bulk Carriers Price Performance

NASDAQ SBLK traded down $0.07 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $15.23. The stock had a trading volume of 408,114 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,821,598. 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 $1.79 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 5.31 and a beta of 0.89. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $14.99 and a 200 day simple moving average of $16.01. The company has a quick ratio of 1.50, a current ratio of 1.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42.

Star Bulk Carriers (NASDAQ:SBLK - Get Free Report) last issued 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). Star Bulk Carriers had a net margin of 24.08% and a return on equity of 12.48%. The business had revenue of $308.92 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $230.91 million. Equities analysts forecast that Star Bulk Carriers Corp. will post 1.74 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Star Bulk Carriers Cuts Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 18th. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 4th were issued a $0.09 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 4th. This represents a $0.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.36%. Star Bulk Carriers's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 12.54%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have issued reports on SBLK. StockNews.com downgraded Star Bulk Carriers from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their target price on 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. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Star Bulk Carriers currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $22.05.

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.