Ardmore Shipping’s (ASC) Hold (C) Rating Reiterated at Weiss Ratings

Weiss Ratings reiterated their hold (c) rating on shares of Ardmore Shipping (NYSE:ASC) in a research report sent to investors on Wednesday,Weiss Ratings reports.

Several other brokerages also recently issued reports on ASC. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “buy” rating and set a $14.00 target price on shares of Ardmore Shipping in a research note on Wednesday, July 30th. Evercore ISI set a $13.00 price target on Ardmore Shipping in a report on Wednesday, July 30th. Finally, Zacks Research cut Ardmore Shipping from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, September 29th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have given a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $12.67.

Ardmore Shipping Stock Down 3.3%

Shares of ASC opened at $10.98 on Wednesday. The business’s 50 day moving average is $11.70 and its 200 day moving average is $10.45. The company has a market capitalization of $446.01 million, a PE ratio of 10.66 and a beta of 0.09. Ardmore Shipping has a 12-month low of $8.32 and a 12-month high of $17.71. The company has a current ratio of 3.88, a quick ratio of 3.56 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04.

Ardmore Shipping (NYSE:ASC) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The shipping company reported $0.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.18 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $72.05 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $44.92 million. Ardmore Shipping had a return on equity of 8.46% and a net margin of 14.48%.The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 40.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.14 EPS. Research analysts expect that Ardmore Shipping will post 1.06 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ardmore Shipping Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 12th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 29th were issued a $0.07 dividend. This is a positive change from Ardmore Shipping’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.05. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 29th. This represents a $0.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.6%. Ardmore Shipping’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 27.18%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ardmore Shipping

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Kingstone Capital Partners Texas LLC purchased a new position in shares of Ardmore Shipping in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $21,019,000. American Century Companies Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Ardmore Shipping by 4.4% in the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,642,656 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $15,769,000 after purchasing an additional 69,788 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its holdings in Ardmore Shipping by 5.2% during the 1st quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 1,487,111 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $14,559,000 after acquiring an additional 73,557 shares during the period. Private Management Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Ardmore Shipping by 3.4% during the 2nd quarter. Private Management Group Inc. now owns 1,242,297 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $11,926,000 after acquiring an additional 40,460 shares during the period. Finally, Royce & Associates LP boosted its holdings in Ardmore Shipping by 5.9% during the 1st quarter. Royce & Associates LP now owns 879,760 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $8,613,000 after acquiring an additional 49,340 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 62.22% of the company’s stock.

Ardmore Shipping Company Profile

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.