Stock Traders Purchase Large Volume of Call Options on Star Bulk Carriers (NASDAQ:SBLK)

Posted by Francis Steltz on Sep 4th, 2026

Star Bulk Carriers Corp. (NASDAQ:SBLK – Get Free Report) was the recipient of unusually large options trading activity on Friday. Stock investors bought 5,369 call options on the stock. This is an increase of approximately 93% compared to the average daily volume of 2,783 call options.

Star Bulk Carriers Stock Up 1.9%

Shares of NASDAQ:SBLK traded up $0.60 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $32.47. 430,648 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,407,809. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $27.97 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $26.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 1.74 and a current ratio of 1.91. Star Bulk Carriers has a twelve month low of $16.72 and a twelve month high of $32.88. The company has a market cap of $3.68 billion, a PE ratio of 12.71 and a beta of 0.70.

Star Bulk Carriers (NASDAQ:SBLK – Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The shipping company reported $1.21 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.95 by $0.26. The firm had revenue of $284.60 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $284.29 million. Star Bulk Carriers had a return on equity of 11.72% and a net margin of 23.87%. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Star Bulk Carriers will post 4.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Star Bulk Carriers Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 3rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 21st were paid a dividend of $0.90 per share. This is a positive change from Star Bulk Carriers’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 21st. This represents a $3.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 11.1%. Star Bulk Carriers’s payout ratio is currently 141.18%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have issued reports on SBLK. Weiss Ratings raised Star Bulk Carriers from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 27th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price objective on Star Bulk Carriers from $29.00 to $31.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 28th. Zacks Research upgraded Star Bulk Carriers from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 14th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a “buy” rating and set a $32.00 target price on shares of Star Bulk Carriers in a research report on Friday, May 22nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and three have issued a Buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Star Bulk Carriers has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $31.50.

Check Out Our Latest Research Report on SBLK

Insider Activity at Star Bulk Carriers

In other news, COO Nikolaos Rescos sold 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $29.50, for a total transaction of $147,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 400,875 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,825,812.50. The trade was a 1.23% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Nikolaos Karellis sold 20,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $26.96, for a total value of $539,200.00. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 101,650 shares of company stock worth $3,027,835. Company insiders own 0.90% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Star Bulk Carriers

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in SBLK. Raiffeisen Bank International AG lifted its position in shares of Star Bulk Carriers by 26.3% in the 2nd quarter. Raiffeisen Bank International AG now owns 66,429 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $1,659,000 after buying an additional 13,851 shares during the last quarter. BTG Pactual Asset Management US LLC raised its stake in Star Bulk Carriers by 3.9% during the second quarter. BTG Pactual Asset Management US LLC now owns 53,570 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $1,338,000 after acquiring an additional 1,986 shares during the period. Headlands Technologies LLC raised its stake in Star Bulk Carriers by 0.8% during the second quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC now owns 66,333 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $1,656,000 after acquiring an additional 518 shares during the period. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio bought a new position in Star Bulk Carriers in the second quarter worth about $1,371,000. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE lifted its holdings in Star Bulk Carriers by 48.5% in the first quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 565,562 shares of the shipping company’s stock worth $12,991,000 after acquiring an additional 184,837 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 33.91% of the company’s stock.

Star Bulk Carriers Company Profile

(Get Free Report)

Star Bulk Carriers Corp is a global shipping company engaged in the ocean transport of dry bulk commodities. The company owns and operates a diversified fleet of bulk carriers, including Handymax, Supramax, Panamax and Capesize vessels. Its ships are designed to carry a broad range of cargoes, such as iron ore, coal, grain, bauxite and phosphate, catering to industrial and agricultural customers worldwide.

The company’s vessels operate on major trade routes across the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans, connecting producers and consumers in Asia, Europe, North and South America.