Guidance Capital Inc. Has $372,000 Stock Holdings in Star Bulk Carriers Corp. (NASDAQ:SBLK)

Guidance Capital Inc. raised its stake in shares of Star Bulk Carriers Corp. (NASDAQ:SBLK) by 6.1% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 25,103 shares of the shipping company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,434 shares during the quarter. Guidance Capital Inc.’s holdings in Star Bulk Carriers were worth $372,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its holdings in Star Bulk Carriers by 190.5% during the third quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 2,025 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $49,000 after purchasing an additional 1,328 shares in the last quarter. Quarry LP boosted its holdings in Star Bulk Carriers by 39.8% during the third quarter. Quarry LP now owns 2,365 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $56,000 after purchasing an additional 673 shares in the last quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. acquired a new stake in Star Bulk Carriers during the third quarter valued at approximately $57,000. AM Squared Ltd acquired a new stake in Star Bulk Carriers during the third quarter valued at approximately $76,000. Finally, Avior Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in Star Bulk Carriers by 26.4% during the third quarter. Avior Wealth Management LLC now owns 6,641 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $157,000 after purchasing an additional 1,385 shares in the last quarter. 33.91% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Star Bulk Carriers Stock Performance

SBLK stock opened at $15.64 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44, a current ratio of 1.69 and a quick ratio of 1.50. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $15.38 and a 200 day moving average price of $19.01. Star Bulk Carriers Corp. has a fifty-two week low of $14.30 and a fifty-two week high of $27.47. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.31 billion, a PE ratio of 5.28 and a beta of 0.95.

Star Bulk Carriers Cuts Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, December 18th. Investors of record on Thursday, December 5th were given a $0.60 dividend. This represents a $2.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 15.35%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, December 5th. Star Bulk Carriers’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 81.08%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. DNB Markets raised Star Bulk Carriers from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $19.30 to $20.20 in a report on Thursday, November 21st. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $28.00 target price on shares of Star Bulk Carriers in a report on Wednesday, November 20th. StockNews.com downgraded Star Bulk Carriers from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus downgraded Star Bulk Carriers from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and reduced their target price for the stock from $30.00 to $21.00 in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $23.80.

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.