Ardmore Shipping (NYSE:ASC) PT Raised to $22.00 at Stifel Nicolaus

Ardmore Shipping (NYSE:ASC) had its price objective lifted by Stifel Nicolaus from $21.00 to $22.00 in a research report released on Friday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a buy rating on the shipping company’s stock.

A number of other research analysts have also commented on the stock. StockNews.com lowered shares of Ardmore Shipping from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research report on Friday. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a buy rating and set a $20.00 price objective on shares of Ardmore Shipping in a research report on Thursday, February 15th.

Ardmore Shipping Stock Up 0.9 %

Shares of ASC opened at $16.03 on Friday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $16.19 and a 200-day simple moving average of $14.94. The firm has a market capitalization of $651.30 million, a P/E ratio of 5.87 and a beta of 0.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15, a quick ratio of 3.38 and a current ratio of 3.75. Ardmore Shipping has a 52 week low of $11.59 and a 52 week high of $17.05.

Ardmore Shipping (NYSE:ASC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 15th. The shipping company reported $0.63 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.61 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $98.80 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $64.26 million. Ardmore Shipping had a net margin of 29.50% and a return on equity of 22.76%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 25.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.33 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts expect that Ardmore Shipping will post 2.66 earnings per share for the current year.

Ardmore Shipping Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, February 29th were given a $0.21 dividend. This represents a $0.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.24%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, February 28th. This is a positive change from Ardmore Shipping’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.16. Ardmore Shipping’s dividend payout ratio is 30.77%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Sunbelt Securities Inc. acquired a new position in Ardmore Shipping in the first quarter worth about $54,000. Quadrant Capital Group LLC raised its position in Ardmore Shipping by 87.3% in the fourth quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 4,382 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $62,000 after purchasing an additional 2,042 shares in the last quarter. MJP Associates Inc. ADV acquired a new position in Ardmore Shipping in the fourth quarter worth about $141,000. Advisor OS LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Ardmore Shipping during the fourth quarter worth approximately $141,000. Finally, Raymond James & Associates bought a new position in shares of Ardmore Shipping in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $141,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 62.22% of the company’s stock.

Ardmore Shipping Company Profile

Ardmore Shipping Corporation engages in the seaborne transportation of petroleum products and chemicals worldwide. The company's fleet consists of 22 owned vessels including 21 Eco-design and 1 Eco-mod vessel, and four chartered-in vessels. It serves oil majors, oil companies, oil and chemical traders, chemical companies, and pooling service providers.