Eagle Bulk Shipping Inc. (NASDAQ:EGLE) Shares Acquired by Paradiem LLC

Paradiem LLC boosted its position in Eagle Bulk Shipping Inc. (NASDAQ:EGLE) by 126.5% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 153,872 shares of the shipping company’s stock after purchasing an additional 85,951 shares during the period. Eagle Bulk Shipping accounts for about 2.4% of Paradiem LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 3rd biggest holding. Paradiem LLC owned about 1.55% of Eagle Bulk Shipping worth $8,525,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Quantbot Technologies LP increased its holdings in Eagle Bulk Shipping by 62.1% in the 3rd quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP now owns 3,593 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $151,000 after purchasing an additional 1,376 shares in the last quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Eagle Bulk Shipping by 481.2% in the 3rd quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 4,115 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $173,000 after purchasing an additional 3,407 shares in the last quarter. Kestra Advisory Services LLC acquired a new position in Eagle Bulk Shipping in the 3rd quarter worth about $286,000. SG Americas Securities LLC acquired a new position in Eagle Bulk Shipping in the 4th quarter worth about $383,000. Finally, Exchange Traded Concepts LLC increased its holdings in Eagle Bulk Shipping by 10.1% in the 3rd quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 9,067 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $381,000 after purchasing an additional 831 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.60% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, major shareholder Castor Maritime Inc. purchased 69,635 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 3rd. The shares were acquired at an average price of $62.65 per share, for a total transaction of $4,362,632.75. Following the completion of the acquisition, the insider now owns 1,461,135 shares in the company, valued at $91,540,107.75. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 1.90% of the company’s stock.

Eagle Bulk Shipping Price Performance

Shares of Eagle Bulk Shipping stock remained flat at $62.60 on Friday. Eagle Bulk Shipping Inc. has a 12-month low of $39.15 and a 12-month high of $65.09. The company has a quick ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $62.10 and its two-hundred day moving average is $53.74. The firm has a market capitalization of $692.98 million, a PE ratio of 40.92 and a beta of 1.49.

Eagle Bulk Shipping (NASDAQ:EGLE) last announced its earnings results on Monday, March 4th. The shipping company reported $1.13 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.75 by $0.38. Eagle Bulk Shipping had a return on equity of 4.62% and a net margin of 5.77%. The company had revenue of $104.59 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $76.16 million. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Eagle Bulk Shipping Inc. will post 4.86 earnings per share for the current year.

Eagle Bulk Shipping Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 21st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, March 13th were issued a $0.60 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 12th. This represents a $2.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.83%. This is a positive change from Eagle Bulk Shipping’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.10. Eagle Bulk Shipping’s dividend payout ratio is presently 156.86%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on EGLE. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “hold” rating and issued a $55.00 price target on shares of Eagle Bulk Shipping in a research note on Wednesday, January 31st. StockNews.com began coverage on Eagle Bulk Shipping in a research note on Wednesday. They issued a “sell” rating for the company. BTIG Research reissued a “neutral” rating on shares of Eagle Bulk Shipping in a research note on Friday, January 5th. B. Riley increased their price target on Eagle Bulk Shipping from $52.20 to $63.50 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, March 4th. Finally, Alliance Global Partners reissued a “neutral” rating on shares of Eagle Bulk Shipping in a research note on Monday, February 26th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and six have assigned a hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $56.75.

About Eagle Bulk Shipping

Eagle Bulk Shipping Inc engages in the ocean transportation of dry bulk cargoes worldwide. The company owns, charters, and operates dry bulk vessels that transport a range of bulk cargoes, including iron ore, coal, grains, fertilizers, steel products, petcoke, and cement. It serves miners, producers, traders, and end users.