Star Bulk Carriers (NASDAQ:SBLK) Reaches New 1-Year Low - Time to Sell?

Star Bulk Carriers Corp. (NASDAQ:SBLK - Get Free Report)'s stock price hit a new 52-week low during trading on Tuesday . The company traded as low as $14.59 and last traded at $14.75, with a volume of 273299 shares. The stock had previously closed at $15.00.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently commented on SBLK. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft assumed coverage on Star Bulk Carriers in a research report on Wednesday, September 4th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $26.00 price target for the company. DNB Markets upgraded Star Bulk Carriers from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating and raised their price target for the stock from $19.30 to $20.20 in a research report on Thursday, November 21st. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $28.00 price objective on shares of Star Bulk Carriers in a research report on Wednesday, November 20th. StockNews.com lowered Star Bulk Carriers from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lowered Star Bulk Carriers from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and decreased their price target for the stock from $30.00 to $21.00 in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Star Bulk Carriers has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $23.80.

Star Bulk Carriers Stock Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 1.50, a current ratio of 1.69 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $18.86 and a 200-day moving average of $21.46. The company has a market cap of $1.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 5.07, a PEG ratio of 3.95 and a beta of 0.96.

Star Bulk Carriers Cuts Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, December 18th. Investors of record on Thursday, December 5th will be issued a $0.60 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, December 5th. This represents a $2.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 16.06%. Star Bulk Carriers's payout ratio is currently 81.08%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Star Bulk Carriers

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Encompass Capital Advisors LLC boosted its position in Star Bulk Carriers by 27.5% during the 2nd quarter. Encompass Capital Advisors LLC now owns 2,052,262 shares of the shipping company's stock valued at $50,034,000 after acquiring an additional 442,860 shares in the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP boosted its position in Star Bulk Carriers by 101.8% during the second quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 1,791,426 shares of the shipping company's stock valued at $43,675,000 after purchasing an additional 903,542 shares in the last quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC grew its stake in Star Bulk Carriers by 25.9% in the second quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 1,746,070 shares of the shipping company's stock valued at $42,569,000 after purchasing an additional 358,870 shares during the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC grew its stake in Star Bulk Carriers by 335.4% in the second quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 1,221,255 shares of the shipping company's stock valued at $29,774,000 after purchasing an additional 940,745 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Philosophy Capital Management LLC bought a new position in Star Bulk Carriers in the third quarter worth about $24,842,000. 33.91% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.