Howard Marks' (Trades, Portfolio) Oaktree Capital Management disclosed on Thursday that the firm trimmed its holding in Star Bulk Carriers Corp. (SBLK, Financial) on June 29, according to GuruFocus real-time picks.
Established in 1995, Oaktree is involved in alternative investments like debt, preferred stocks and convertible bonds. As chairman, Marks is responsible for ensuring the firm's adherence to its core investment philosophy.
Trade details
Oaktree sold 5,256,437 shares of Star Bulk for $12.86 per share, reducing the position to 27,323,069 shares. The firm pared 1.64% of its public equity portfolio with this transaction.
Oaktree mentioned in its Schedule 13D filing that fund affiliate Dry Bulk Holdings and Morgan Stanley (MS, Financial) entered into an underwriting agreement for the sale of 5 million shares of Star Bulk Carriers on June 26. The transaction closed on June 29.
Company background
Star Bulk Carriers, a Greek transportation and logistics company, transports iron ore, coal and grain around the world through its dry bulk carrier vessels. The company said on June 13 that time charter equivalent revenues for the three months ending March 31 increased from $49 million to $81.6 million, driven by several factors, including a 54% increase in “charterhire rates” and higher number of vessels. Total voyage revenues and operating income for the quarter were approximately $121 million and $23.28 million.
Although the company’s revenue increased 29.60% over the past 12 months, the company’s three-year revenue growth rate of -25.20% underperforms 96% of global competitors. GuruFocus ranks the company’s profitability 1 out of 10 and lists two severe warning signs: contracting gross margins and declining revenues over the past five years.
See also
Oaktree has the largest stake in Star Bulk Carriers among the gurus. Other gurus with positions in the company include Leucadia National (Trades, Portfolio) and Chuck Royce (Trades, Portfolio).
According to the GuruFocus top 10 holdings pages, Oaktree’s position in Star Bulk Carriers represents its second-largest holding. The firm’s other top positions include Vistra Energy Corp. (VST, Financial), Altaba Inc. (AABA, Financial), Tribune Media Co. (TRCO, Financial) and Ally Financial Inc. (ALLY, Financial).
Disclosure: No positions.
