UPDATE 1-Star Bulk Q2 loss wider than expected; shares dip

* Q2 adj loss $0.05 vs est loss/shr $0.01: Reuters Estimates

* Q2 revenue falls 45 pct to $32.4 mln

* Shares fall 8 pct in after-market trade

Aug 12 (Reuters) - Star Bulk Carriers Corp (SBLK.O) posted a wider-than-expected second-quarter loss, mainly hurt by lower charter rates, sending its shares down 8 percent.

In the latest quarter, the shipping company posted a net loss of $3.4 million, or 6 cents a share, compared with a profit of $31.6 million, or 56 cents a share, a year ago.

Excluding items, the company posted a loss of 5 cents a share, wider than analysts' consensus estimate of a loss of 1 cent, according to Reuters Estimates.

Revenue for the quarter dropped 45 percent to $32.4 million.

Second-quarter time charter equivalent rates, a measure of hire rates, fell 35 percent to $30,019 per day.

"As of June 30, 2009, our senior debt was $272 million while our cash position stood at $64.5 million, translating into a net debt of approximately 26 percent of our fixed assets," Chief Financial Officer George Syllantavos said in a statement.

Shares of the company fell to $3.15 in trading after the bell. They closed at $3.42 Wednesday on Nasdaq. (Reporting by Antonita Madonna Devotta in Bangalore; Editing by Deepak Kannan)