Ardmore Shipping (NYSE:ASC) Shares Down 4.6% – Here’s What Happened

Ardmore Shipping Corporation (NYSE:ASC) was down 4.6% on Wednesday . The company traded as low as $17.26 and last traded at $17.1630. Approximately 205,351 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 69% from the average session volume of 671,354 shares. The stock had previously closed at $17.99.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have commented on ASC shares. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Ardmore Shipping from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 19th. Wall Street Zen lowered Ardmore Shipping from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, August 1st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $17.00.

Ardmore Shipping Trading Down 4.5%

The firm has a market cap of $699.54 million, a P/E ratio of 6.61 and a beta of 0.03. The company has a current ratio of 5.45, a quick ratio of 4.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $16.51 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $16.25.

Ardmore Shipping (NYSE:ASC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The shipping company reported $1.18 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.11 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $116.21 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $86.30 million. Ardmore Shipping had a net margin of 29.67% and a return on equity of 15.24%.

Ardmore Shipping Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 28th will be paid a $0.79 dividend. This represents a $3.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 18.4%. This is an increase from Ardmore Shipping’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.39. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 28th. Ardmore Shipping’s dividend payout ratio is presently 60.23%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ardmore Shipping

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of ASC. AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Ardmore Shipping by 31.2% in the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 77,769 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $761,000 after purchasing an additional 18,500 shares in the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of Ardmore Shipping by 4.7% in the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 24,701 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $242,000 after buying an additional 1,102 shares during the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC lifted its position in Ardmore Shipping by 7.5% during the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 234,987 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $2,301,000 after buying an additional 16,458 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its holdings in Ardmore Shipping by 23.1% during the 2nd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 311,162 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $2,987,000 after acquiring an additional 58,330 shares during the last quarter. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in Ardmore Shipping by 1,689.0% in the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 8,444 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $81,000 after acquiring an additional 7,972 shares in the last quarter. 62.22% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Ardmore Shipping

Ardmore Shipping Corporation is a Bermuda-based provider of seaborne transportation services for refined petroleum products. The company owns and operates a modern fleet of product tankers, including medium-range (MR), long-range 2 (LR2) and Aframax vessels. Ardmore Shipping focuses on the ocean carriage of clean and dirty petroleum products under time charters, bareboat charters and spot voyages, serving a diverse customer base that includes major oil companies and trading houses.

Since its founding in 2005, Ardmore Shipping has grown its fleet through newbuilding contracts, second-hand acquisitions and fleet renewals, aiming to maintain a high quality, fuel-efficient profile.