Star Bulk Carriers Sees Unusually High Options Volume (NASDAQ:SBLK)

Star Bulk Carriers Corp. (NASDAQ:SBLK) was the target of some unusual options trading on Wednesday. Investors purchased 12,516 put options on the stock. This represents an increase of approximately 362% compared to the typical volume of 2,710 put options.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus upped their target price on shares of Star Bulk Carriers from $28.00 to $32.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 24th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft assumed coverage on shares of Star Bulk Carriers in a research report on Wednesday. They set a “buy” rating and a $26.00 price objective for the company. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $30.00 target price on shares of Star Bulk Carriers in a report on Thursday, May 23rd. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded Star Bulk Carriers from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 24th.

Star Bulk Carriers Price Performance

Shares of SBLK opened at $20.68 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $22.48 and a 200 day moving average price of $23.83. The stock has a market cap of $1.74 billion, a PE ratio of 9.32 and a beta of 0.97. Star Bulk Carriers has a 1-year low of $17.12 and a 1-year high of $27.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48, a current ratio of 1.51 and a quick ratio of 1.34.

Star Bulk Carriers (NASDAQ:SBLK) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, August 7th. The shipping company reported $0.78 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.79 by ($0.01). Star Bulk Carriers had a net margin of 24.05% and a return on equity of 13.58%. The firm had revenue of $352.88 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $329.38 million. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.47 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Star Bulk Carriers will post 3.47 EPS for the current year.

Star Bulk Carriers Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 6th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, August 27th will be paid a $0.70 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, August 27th. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 13.54%. Star Bulk Carriers’s dividend payout ratio is presently 126.13%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Star Bulk Carriers

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Sanctuary Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Star Bulk Carriers in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $754,000. Gordian Capital Singapore Pte Ltd acquired a new position in Star Bulk Carriers in the 2nd quarter valued at $1,585,000. Point72 Asset Management L.P. raised its position in Star Bulk Carriers by 154.4% during the 2nd quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. now owns 35,113 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $856,000 after buying an additional 21,313 shares during the last quarter. B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Star Bulk Carriers by 39.5% in the 2nd quarter. B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 49,022 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $1,195,000 after acquiring an additional 13,869 shares during the period. Finally, Susquehanna Portfolio Strategies LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Star Bulk Carriers by 10.9% in the second quarter. Susquehanna Portfolio Strategies LLC now owns 94,881 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $2,313,000 after acquiring an additional 9,304 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 33.91% of the company’s stock.

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.