Hsbc Holdings PLC Acquires 1,024 Shares of Ardmore Shipping Corporation $ASC

Hsbc Holdings PLC lifted its holdings in shares of Ardmore Shipping Corporation (NYSE:ASC) by 6.3% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 17,263 shares of the shipping company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,024 shares during the period. Hsbc Holdings PLC’s holdings in Ardmore Shipping were worth $173,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Pinnacle Holdings LLC bought a new position in Ardmore Shipping in the first quarter valued at about $27,000. Lazard Asset Management LLC bought a new position in Ardmore Shipping in the fourth quarter valued at about $36,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. boosted its holdings in Ardmore Shipping by 545.0% in the first quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. now owns 3,683 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 3,112 shares during the last quarter. Ameriflex Group Inc. bought a new position in Ardmore Shipping in the fourth quarter valued at about $47,000. Finally, TrueMark Investments LLC bought a new position in Ardmore Shipping in the first quarter valued at about $129,000. Institutional investors own 62.22% of the company’s stock.

Ardmore Shipping Trading Up 2.9%

NYSE:ASC opened at $12.03 on Friday. Ardmore Shipping Corporation has a 1-year low of $8.32 and a 1-year high of $18.79. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $10.68 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $10.04. The company has a current ratio of 3.88, a quick ratio of 3.56 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04. The firm has a market capitalization of $488.46 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.67 and a beta of 0.12.

Ardmore Shipping (NYSE:ASC) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The shipping company reported $0.22 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.18 by $0.04. Ardmore Shipping had a return on equity of 8.46% and a net margin of 14.48%.The firm had revenue of $72.05 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $44.92 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.14 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 40.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts expect that Ardmore Shipping Corporation will post 1.06 earnings per share for the current year.

Ardmore Shipping Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 12th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 29th will be paid a $0.07 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 29th. This is a positive change from Ardmore Shipping’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.05. This represents a $0.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.3%. Ardmore Shipping’s payout ratio is currently 27.18%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. Evercore ISI set a $13.00 price target on Ardmore Shipping in a report on Wednesday, July 30th. Zacks Research upgraded Ardmore Shipping from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 20th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $14.00 price target on shares of Ardmore Shipping in a report on Wednesday, July 30th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have given a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $12.67.

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.