144,945 Shares in Star Bulk Carriers Corp. $SBLK Bought by Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd

Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Star Bulk Carriers Corp. (NASDAQ:SBLK) during the 1st quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm purchased 144,945 shares of the shipping company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,329,000.

Several other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Mirabella Financial Services LLP bought a new position in Star Bulk Carriers in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $73,967,000. Alliancebernstein L.P. acquired a new stake in Star Bulk Carriers during the second quarter worth approximately $64,949,000. Millennium Management LLC increased its holdings in Star Bulk Carriers by 1,018.5% in the fourth quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 887,056 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $17,049,000 after purchasing an additional 807,751 shares in the last quarter. Boston Partners lifted its stake in Star Bulk Carriers by 424.7% in the fourth quarter. Boston Partners now owns 843,098 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $16,205,000 after buying an additional 682,406 shares during the period. Finally, Fearnley Asset Management AS acquired a new stake in shares of Star Bulk Carriers during the 4th quarter worth approximately $11,096,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 33.91% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Star Bulk Carriers

In other Star Bulk Carriers news, Director Nikolaos Karellis sold 20,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $26.96, for a total transaction of $539,200.00. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, COO Nikolaos Reskos sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $28.49, for a total transaction of $142,450.00. Following the sale, the chief operating officer owned 362,775 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,335,459.75. This represents a 1.36% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 108,103 shares of company stock valued at $2,886,212.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on SBLK shares. Zacks Research cut shares of Star Bulk Carriers from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, June 22nd. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Star Bulk Carriers in a report on Wednesday, June 24th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on shares of Star Bulk Carriers from $29.00 to $31.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 28th. Wall Street Zen raised Star Bulk Carriers from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, April 18th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft restated a “buy” rating and set a $32.00 price target on shares of Star Bulk Carriers in a report on Friday, May 22nd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Star Bulk Carriers presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $31.50.

Star Bulk Carriers Stock Performance

Shares of SBLK stock traded up $0.13 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $26.25. 674,625 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,416,322. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $26.32 and its 200 day moving average is $23.88. The company has a market capitalization of $2.98 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.00 and a beta of 0.72. Star Bulk Carriers Corp. has a 1 year low of $16.72 and a 1 year high of $28.50. The company has a current ratio of 1.73, a quick ratio of 1.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32.

Star Bulk Carriers Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 22nd. Investors of record on Friday, June 12th were given a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 7.6%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 12th. This is a positive change from Star Bulk Carriers’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.37. Star Bulk Carriers’s dividend payout ratio is presently 160.00%.

Star Bulk Carriers Company Profile

Star Bulk Carriers Corp is a global shipping company engaged in the ocean transport of dry bulk commodities. The company owns and operates a diversified fleet of bulk carriers, including Handymax, Supramax, Panamax and Capesize vessels. Its ships are designed to carry a broad range of cargoes, such as iron ore, coal, grain, bauxite and phosphate, catering to industrial and agricultural customers worldwide.

The company’s vessels operate on major trade routes across the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans, connecting producers and consumers in Asia, Europe, North and South America.