Huge US investment management firm BlackRock has strengthened its position as one of UK shipbroker Clarksons' biggest shareholders.

According to a regulatory filing, the New York-based company increased its stake to 5.38% in the London-listed group on 30 November.

The holding is worth £59m ($79m) based on a share price of £36.40 on Thursday.

That price gives Clarksons, the world's biggest shipbroker, a market cap of £1.11bn.

The shipbroker has been asked for comment.

Bosses will surely see the move as a vindication of its operations, as well as its prospects in a buoyant container ship and bulker markets — and with a tanker recovery on the horizon.

Moving up the charts

MarketScreener lists BlackRock with a stake of 3.49% previously, meaning a spend of somewhere around $21m to reach 5.38%.

Fidelity Management & Research is reported as the biggest investor with 6.89%, followed by RS Platou Holding on 6.62%.

BlackRock now ranks next, while the only other shareholder above 5% is Barclays on 5.34%.

Clarksons' top executives have substantial holdings in the broker too.

In April, new awards of share options left chief executive Andi Case sitting on a potential stake worth £19.9m at that time.

The working shipbroker was given 8,253 restricted shares comprising the 10% deferred element of his 2020 bonus.

And Case also got 28,576 shares as a performance award.

Clarksons finance and operating chief Jeff Woyda was awarded 2,134 restricted shares and 18,184 performance options.

The restricted shares will vest in 2025, while the options are subject to certain performance conditions over a three-year period — and then a two-year holding period.

Skin in the game

Case already had 514,458 Clarksons shares, or a 1.69% stake, and restricted shares and options bring this to 2.25%.

Woyda has a total holding of 0.56%, with options added in.

In 2017, Case offloaded 243,512 shares at £24.75 each, banking £6.02m, while Woyda disposed of 37,674 at the same price, earning him £0.93m.

In July, BlackRock significantly reduced its stake in Irish product tanker owner Ardmore Shipping.

The company sold nearly 1.7m shares, according to regulatory filings, whittling down its position from 2.2m shares to 495,717.

According to Ardmore's annual report, Blackrock was the company's second-largest shareholder, with 6.6% of all shares and behind Aristotle Capital Boston's 3.6m shares.

And BlackRock partnered Greek LNG carrier owner GasLog this year to take the company private.

The Peter Livanos-backed shipping company closed a deal with BlackRock’s Global Energy & Power Infrastructure Fund that saw GasLog delisted in New York.