Investment manager Blackrock has bumped up its stake in Ardmore Shipping.
The New York-based firm disclosed in regulatory filings after the close on Friday that 2.2m shares in the Irish product tankers owner, or 6.6% of the company.
In its 2020 disclosure, Blackrock said it owned 2m shares, or 5.9%.
Ardmore finished the week down $0.07 to $3.19, hitting a high of $3.52 on Tuesday.
Last year, products tankers rallied in the spring, with the Baltic Clean Tanker Index hitting an all-time high of 2,190 on 27 April due to a collapsed oil price, before falling back to earth.
Rates remain depressed, although the index rose slightly throughout the month, finishing at 511, with a high of 515 on Monday.
The product tanker sector is expected to continue to be rough, with the Covid-19 outbreak dragging on and putting downward pressure on oil demand.
Several in the industry do not expect the market to improve until vaccination becomes widespread later this year.
However, products tankers are expected to fare better than crude tankers, with Jefferies analyst Randy Giveans suggesting the small orderbook for the sector would be a boon for the supply side.
According to regulatory filings, Blackrock was Ardmore's fifth-largest shareholder last summer, and would overtake Dimensional Fund Advisors and Donald Smith & Co to third if they hold their positions.
Dimensional Fund Advisors owns 2.15m shares and Donald Smith & Co 2m shares.
Ardmore's biggest shareholder is Aristotle Capital Management with 3.45m shares followed by Fidelity at 2.6m.
