Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC Takes $201,000 Position in Star Bulk Carriers Corp. (NASDAQ:SBLK)

Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Star Bulk Carriers Corp. (NASDAQ:SBLK) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 9,319 shares of the shipping company’s stock, valued at approximately $201,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of SBLK. Grand Alliance Asset Management Ltd purchased a new stake in Star Bulk Carriers during the 4th quarter valued at $12,756,000. Ramirez Asset Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Star Bulk Carriers during the 3rd quarter valued at $7,752,000. Artemis Investment Management LLP raised its holdings in Star Bulk Carriers by 407.1% during the 4th quarter. Artemis Investment Management LLP now owns 372,702 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $7,924,000 after buying an additional 299,200 shares during the period. Jessup Wealth Management Inc purchased a new stake in Star Bulk Carriers during the 4th quarter valued at $5,042,000. Finally, GSA Capital Partners LLP purchased a new stake in Star Bulk Carriers during the 3rd quarter valued at $1,977,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 33.91% of the company’s stock.

Star Bulk Carriers Stock Down 0.3 %

NASDAQ:SBLK opened at $23.73 on Wednesday. Star Bulk Carriers Corp. has a twelve month low of $16.57 and a twelve month high of $27.47. The company has a market cap of $1.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.69 and a beta of 1.04. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $25.13 and a 200-day simple moving average of $23.29. The company has a current ratio of 1.43, a quick ratio of 1.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54.

Star Bulk Carriers (NASDAQ:SBLK) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 22nd. The shipping company reported $0.87 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.87. The firm had revenue of $259.39 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $260.78 million. Star Bulk Carriers had a return on equity of 12.19% and a net margin of 20.57%. Analysts anticipate that Star Bulk Carriers Corp. will post 3.72 EPS for the current year.

Star Bulk Carriers Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 20th. Investors of record on Thursday, June 6th will be issued a $0.75 dividend. This is an increase from Star Bulk Carriers’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.45. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 12.64%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, June 6th. Star Bulk Carriers’s payout ratio is presently 135.14%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have weighed in on SBLK. Stifel Nicolaus increased their target price on Star Bulk Carriers from $28.00 to $32.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 24th. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $30.00 target price on shares of Star Bulk Carriers in a research report on Thursday, May 23rd. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded Star Bulk Carriers from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, May 24th.

Star Bulk Carriers Company Profile

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.