Algert Global LLC Acquires 18,000 Shares of Ardmore Shipping Co. (NYSE:ASC)

Algert Global LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Ardmore Shipping Co. (NYSE:ASC) by 76.3% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 41,602 shares of the shipping company’s stock after purchasing an additional 18,000 shares during the period. Algert Global LLC’s holdings in Ardmore Shipping were worth $505,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Signaturefd LLC raised its holdings in shares of Ardmore Shipping by 63.3% during the fourth quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 2,371 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 919 shares in the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc raised its holdings in shares of Ardmore Shipping by 18.5% during the fourth quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 8,010 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $97,000 after acquiring an additional 1,252 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Ardmore Shipping by 3.0% during the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 44,482 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $769,000 after acquiring an additional 1,304 shares in the last quarter. Quarry LP raised its holdings in shares of Ardmore Shipping by 37.4% during the fourth quarter. Quarry LP now owns 4,890 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $59,000 after acquiring an additional 1,332 shares in the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC raised its holdings in shares of Ardmore Shipping by 261.1% during the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,116 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 1,530 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 62.22% of the company’s stock.

Ardmore Shipping Stock Performance

Shares of Ardmore Shipping stock opened at $9.90 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 4.24, a quick ratio of 3.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06. The firm has a market capitalization of $402.18 million, a P/E ratio of 3.24 and a beta of -0.02. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $9.55 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $11.01. Ardmore Shipping Co. has a 12 month low of $8.32 and a 12 month high of $23.44.

Ardmore Shipping (NYSE:ASC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The shipping company reported $0.14 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.15 by ($0.01). Ardmore Shipping had a net margin of 32.78% and a return on equity of 20.48%. The company had revenue of $74.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $43.04 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.92 earnings per share. Ardmore Shipping’s revenue was down 30.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts forecast that Ardmore Shipping Co. will post 1.06 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ardmore Shipping Cuts Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 28th were issued a dividend of $0.08 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 28th. This represents a $0.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.23%. Ardmore Shipping’s payout ratio is presently 10.46%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

ASC has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Evercore ISI decreased their target price on Ardmore Shipping from $14.00 to $13.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Fearnley Fonds raised Ardmore Shipping from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 6th. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price objective on Ardmore Shipping from $13.00 to $11.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “buy” rating and set a $17.00 price objective on shares of Ardmore Shipping in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $13.67.

About Ardmore Shipping

Ardmore Shipping Corporation engages in the seaborne transportation of petroleum products and chemicals worldwide. The company's fleet consists of 22 owned vessels including 21 Eco-design and 1 Eco-mod vessel, and four chartered-in vessels. It serves oil majors, oil companies, oil and chemical traders, chemical companies, and pooling service providers.