Star Bulk Carriers (NASDAQ:SBLK) Price Target Cut to $21.00 by Analysts at Jefferies Financial Group

Star Bulk Carriers (NASDAQ:SBLK) had its price objective dropped by stock analysts at Jefferies Financial Group from $22.00 to $21.00 in a note issued to investors on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has a “buy” rating on the shipping company’s stock. Jefferies Financial Group’s target price indicates a potential upside of 28.13% from the company’s current price.

SBLK has been the subject of a number of other research reports. StockNews.com cut shares of Star Bulk Carriers from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Stifel Nicolaus cut shares of 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. Finally, DNB Markets raised shares of Star Bulk Carriers from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $19.30 to $20.20 in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Star Bulk Carriers has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $22.05.

Star Bulk Carriers Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ SBLK opened at $16.39 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44, a quick ratio of 1.50 and a current ratio of 1.69. Star Bulk Carriers has a one year low of $14.30 and a one year high of $27.47. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 5.54 and a beta of 0.95. The company’s fifty day moving average is $15.17 and its two-hundred day moving average is $18.55.

Star Bulk Carriers (NASDAQ:SBLK) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 18th. The shipping company reported $0.34 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.42 by ($0.08). Star Bulk Carriers had a return on equity of 14.82% and a net margin of 24.75%. Analysts forecast that Star Bulk Carriers will post 2.63 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of Star Bulk Carriers

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich purchased a new position in shares of Star Bulk Carriers in the 4th quarter worth $28,000. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust purchased a new stake in Star Bulk Carriers during the fourth quarter valued at about $30,000. Capital Analysts LLC increased its stake in Star Bulk Carriers by 215.9% during the fourth quarter. Capital Analysts LLC now owns 2,284 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 1,561 shares during the last quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC raised its holdings in shares of Star Bulk Carriers by 177.0% in the 4th quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 2,623 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 1,676 shares during the period. Finally, Mountain Hill Investment Partners Corp. acquired a new position in shares of Star Bulk Carriers in the 4th quarter valued at about $45,000. 33.91% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Star Bulk Carriers

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.