Stock Traders Buy High Volume of Call Options on Star Bulk Carriers (NASDAQ:SBLK)

Star Bulk Carriers Corp. (NASDAQ:SBLK) was the recipient of some unusual options trading activity on Wednesday. Stock traders acquired 6,785 call options on the company. This represents an increase of 242% compared to the typical daily volume of 1,982 call options.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Star Bulk Carriers

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. FMR LLC grew its position in Star Bulk Carriers by 229.6% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 404,196 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $9,575,000 after acquiring an additional 281,552 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Star Bulk Carriers by 359.3% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 457,274 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $10,833,000 after purchasing an additional 357,720 shares in the last quarter. Barclays PLC boosted its holdings in shares of Star Bulk Carriers by 7,313.4% in the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 455,254 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $10,784,000 after purchasing an additional 449,113 shares in the last quarter. Autumn Glory Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Star Bulk Carriers during the 3rd quarter valued at about $649,000. Finally, Benson Investment Management Company Inc. bought a new stake in Star Bulk Carriers in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $5,259,000. 33.91% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Star Bulk Carriers Trading Up 0.6 %

Shares of SBLK stock opened at $15.72 on Thursday. Star Bulk Carriers has a 52-week low of $14.30 and a 52-week high of $27.47. The business’s fifty day moving average is $15.20 and its 200 day moving average is $18.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44, a quick ratio of 1.50 and a current ratio of 1.69. The company has a market capitalization of $1.32 billion, a PE ratio of 5.31 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 dividend yield of 15.27%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, December 5th. Star Bulk Carriers’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 81.08%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

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