Renaissance Technologies LLC Sells 2,400 Shares of Star Bulk Carriers Corp. (NASDAQ:SBLK)

Renaissance Technologies LLC decreased its position in shares of Star Bulk Carriers Corp. (NASDAQ:SBLK) by 0.1% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,756,505 shares of the shipping company’s stock after selling 2,400 shares during the quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC’s holdings in Star Bulk Carriers were worth $26,260,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Sowell Financial Services LLC bought a new position in Star Bulk Carriers during the 4th quarter worth $904,000. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Star Bulk Carriers by 359.3% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 457,274 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $10,833,000 after buying an additional 357,720 shares during the period. Barclays PLC raised its position in shares of Star Bulk Carriers by 7,313.4% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 455,254 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $10,784,000 after acquiring an additional 449,113 shares during the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Star Bulk Carriers by 1,458.8% in the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 31,565 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $472,000 after acquiring an additional 29,540 shares during the period. Finally, Handelsbanken Fonder AB boosted its holdings in Star Bulk Carriers by 23.4% in the fourth quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 19,082 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $285,000 after acquiring an additional 3,616 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 33.91% of the company’s stock.

Star Bulk Carriers Stock Performance

Shares of SBLK stock opened at $14.24 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $15.47 and a 200-day moving average of $16.95. The company has a market cap of $1.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 4.96 and a beta of 0.77. The company has a quick ratio of 1.50, a current ratio of 1.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42. Star Bulk Carriers Corp. has a 52 week low of $12.06 and a 52 week high of $27.47.

Star Bulk Carriers (NASDAQ:SBLK) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 18th. The shipping company reported $0.34 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.42 by ($0.08). Star Bulk Carriers had a return on equity of 12.48% and a net margin of 24.08%. The company had revenue of $308.92 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $230.91 million. On average, equities analysts forecast that Star Bulk Carriers Corp. will post 1.74 earnings per share for the current year.

Star Bulk Carriers Cuts Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 18th. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 4th were paid a dividend of $0.09 per share. This represents a $0.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.53%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 4th. Star Bulk Carriers’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 12.54%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

SBLK has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price objective on shares of Star Bulk Carriers from $22.00 to $21.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. StockNews.com cut shares of Star Bulk Carriers from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $22.05.

Star Bulk Carriers 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.