Ardmore Shipping Co. (NYSE:ASC) Shares Bought by Principal Financial Group Inc.

Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Ardmore Shipping Co. (NYSE:ASC) by 26.4% in the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 31,355 shares of the shipping company’s stock after purchasing an additional 6,553 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in Ardmore Shipping were worth $568,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ASC. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in Ardmore Shipping by 51.0% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 541,103 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $8,885,000 after acquiring an additional 182,650 shares in the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its position in Ardmore Shipping by 15.9% during the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 11,934 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $196,000 after purchasing an additional 1,634 shares in the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC acquired a new position in shares of Ardmore Shipping in the first quarter worth $194,000. Tidal Investments LLC increased its stake in Ardmore Shipping by 16.8% in the first quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 18,906 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $310,000 after purchasing an additional 2,719 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Invst LLC increased its stake in Ardmore Shipping by 78.3% during the first quarter. Invst LLC now owns 20,166 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $338,000 after acquiring an additional 8,856 shares during the last quarter. 62.22% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have commented on ASC shares. StockNews.com lowered Ardmore Shipping from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 25th. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their target price on Ardmore Shipping from $20.00 to $17.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, November 14th. Fearnley Fonds upgraded Ardmore Shipping to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, September 27th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus cut Ardmore Shipping from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and dropped their price target for the stock from $24.00 to $17.00 in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $20.00.

Ardmore Shipping Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE ASC opened at $11.85 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $495.80 million, a P/E ratio of 3.32 and a beta of 0.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03, a quick ratio of 3.26 and a current ratio of 3.57. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $15.53 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $18.85. Ardmore Shipping Co. has a 1 year low of $11.59 and a 1 year high of $23.44.

Ardmore Shipping Cuts Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 13th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 29th will be paid a dividend of $0.18 per share. This represents a $0.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.08%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 29th. Ardmore Shipping’s dividend payout ratio is presently 42.58%.

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.