Star Bulk Carriers (NASDAQ:SBLK) Coverage Initiated by Analysts at StockNews.com

StockNews.com started coverage on shares of Star Bulk Carriers (NASDAQ:SBLK – Get Rating) in a research note published on Thursday. The firm issued a hold rating on the shipping company’s stock.

Separately, Jefferies Financial Group restated a buy rating and set a $26.00 price objective on shares of Star Bulk Carriers in a research note on Friday, February 17th.

Star Bulk Carriers Stock Down 4.3 %

Star Bulk Carriers stock opened at $20.46 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.09 billion, a PE ratio of 3.70 and a beta of 1.09. The company’s 50-day moving average is $22.30 and its 200-day moving average is $20.46. Star Bulk Carriers has a fifty-two week low of $16.85 and a fifty-two week high of $33.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a current ratio of 1.78 and a quick ratio of 1.54.

Star Bulk Carriers Cuts Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 14th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 28th were issued a dividend of $0.60 per share. This represents a $2.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 11.73%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 27th. Star Bulk Carriers’s payout ratio is 43.40%.

Institutional Trading of Star Bulk Carriers

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Captrust Financial Advisors boosted its holdings in shares of Star Bulk Carriers by 1.1% during the 4th quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 48,830 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $939,000 after buying an additional 523 shares during the period. Banque Cantonale Vaudoise boosted its holdings in shares of Star Bulk Carriers by 3.9% during the 3rd quarter. Banque Cantonale Vaudoise now owns 14,840 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $259,000 after buying an additional 562 shares during the period. Sigma Planning Corp boosted its holdings in Star Bulk Carriers by 2.7% in the 2nd quarter. Sigma Planning Corp now owns 25,878 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $647,000 after purchasing an additional 683 shares during the period. Advisory Services Network LLC boosted its holdings in Star Bulk Carriers by 3.2% in the 1st quarter. Advisory Services Network LLC now owns 25,305 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $751,000 after purchasing an additional 786 shares during the period. Finally, Vestmark Advisory Solutions Inc. boosted its holdings in Star Bulk Carriers by 8.5% in the 3rd quarter. Vestmark Advisory Solutions Inc. now owns 10,457 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $183,000 after purchasing an additional 823 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 46.29% of the company’s stock.

Star Bulk Carriers Company Profile

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Star Bulk Carriers Corp. provides seaborne transportation solutions in the dry bulk sector. The firm’s vessels transport major bulks, which include iron ore, minerals and grain, and minor bulks, which include bauxite, fertilizers and steel products. The company was founded by Petros Alexandros Pappas on December 13, 2006 and is headquartered in Athens, Greece.