Geode Capital Management LLC Boosts Stake in Ardmore Shipping Co. (NYSE:ASC)

Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Ardmore Shipping Co. (NYSE:ASC) by 1.4% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 570,381 shares of the shipping company’s stock after acquiring an additional 8,008 shares during the quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC owned 1.36% of Ardmore Shipping worth $6,930,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the business. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in shares of Ardmore Shipping by 261.1% in the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,116 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 1,530 shares in the last quarter. Signaturefd LLC raised its holdings in Ardmore Shipping by 63.3% in the fourth quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 2,371 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 919 shares in the last quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Ardmore Shipping by 302.4% during the 4th quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 2,519 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 1,893 shares during the last quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC grew its holdings in Ardmore Shipping by 228.1% during the 4th quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 4,922 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $60,000 after acquiring an additional 3,422 shares in the last quarter. Finally, AXQ Capital LP bought a new stake in shares of Ardmore Shipping in the 4th quarter worth about $123,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 62.22% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms recently commented on ASC. Evercore ISI decreased their price target on Ardmore Shipping from $14.00 to $13.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price target on Ardmore Shipping from $13.00 to $11.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 14th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group restated a “buy” rating and set a $17.00 price objective on shares of Ardmore Shipping in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $13.67.

Ardmore Shipping Stock Up 1.2 %

NYSE:ASC opened at $9.37 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $379.06 million, a PE ratio of 3.06 and a beta of 0.16. Ardmore Shipping Co. has a 52 week low of $8.32 and a 52 week high of $23.44. The company has a current ratio of 4.24, a quick ratio of 3.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $9.57 and a 200-day moving average of $11.63.

Ardmore Shipping (NYSE:ASC) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The shipping company reported $0.25 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.33 by ($0.08). Ardmore Shipping had a return on equity of 20.48% and a net margin of 32.78%. Analysts predict that Ardmore Shipping Co. will post 1.06 EPS for the current year.

Ardmore Shipping Cuts Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 28th were paid a dividend of $0.08 per share. This represents a $0.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.42%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 28th. Ardmore Shipping’s payout ratio is 10.46%.

Ardmore Shipping 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.