Ardmore Shipping (NYSE:ASC) Posts Quarterly Earnings Results, Beats Expectations By $0.07 EPS

Ardmore Shipping (NYSE:ASC) announced its earnings results on Wednesday. The shipping company reported $1.18 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.11 by $0.07, FiscalAI reports. Ardmore Shipping had a net margin of 18.00% and a return on equity of 9.63%. The firm had revenue of $116.21 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $86.30 million.

Ardmore Shipping Price Performance

ASC traded up $0.17 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $16.56. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 236,603 shares, compared to its average volume of 684,110. The company has a current ratio of 4.87, a quick ratio of 4.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16. The firm has a market capitalization of $674.53 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.50 and a beta of 0.04. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $16.43 and its 200 day simple moving average is $15.51. Ardmore Shipping has a twelve month low of $10.17 and a twelve month high of $20.02.

Ardmore Shipping Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 12th. Investors of record on Friday, May 29th were issued a $0.39 dividend. This represents a $1.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 9.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 29th. This is a positive change from Ardmore Shipping’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.09. Ardmore Shipping’s payout ratio is currently 117.29%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have issued reports on the stock. Evercore set a $19.00 price objective on shares of Ardmore Shipping in a research note on Tuesday, April 21st. Wall Street Zen upgraded Ardmore Shipping from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, May 9th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Ardmore Shipping in a report on Tuesday, July 7th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $17.00.

Insider Activity at Ardmore Shipping

In other Ardmore Shipping news, Director Curtis B. Mcwilliams sold 16,277 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, May 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $19.38, for a total transaction of $315,448.26. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 60,673 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,175,842.74. This trade represents a 21.15% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, President Bart B. Kelleher sold 8,000 shares of Ardmore Shipping stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $19.07, for a total transaction of $152,560.00. Following the completion of the sale, the president owned 60,039 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,144,943.73. This trade represents a 11.76% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 40,000 shares of company stock valued at $766,048.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Moore Capital Management LP acquired a new stake in Ardmore Shipping in the 4th quarter worth about $3,177,000. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its position in shares of Ardmore Shipping by 848.0% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 324,295 shares of the shipping company’s stock valued at $3,849,000 after acquiring an additional 290,087 shares in the last quarter. Trexquant Investment LP acquired a new stake in shares of Ardmore Shipping in the fourth quarter worth approximately $1,947,000. Tudor Investment Corp ET AL boosted its stake in shares of Ardmore Shipping by 133.0% in the fourth quarter. Tudor Investment Corp ET AL now owns 229,640 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $2,432,000 after acquiring an additional 131,069 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Marex Group plc increased its position in shares of Ardmore Shipping by 178.9% during the fourth quarter. Marex Group plc now owns 201,188 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $2,131,000 after purchasing an additional 129,063 shares in the last quarter. 62.22% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Ardmore Shipping Company Profile

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.