SLR Investment Corp. (NASDAQ:SLRC) Receives Consensus Recommendation of "Hold" from Brokerages

Key Points

• Analysts have a consensus “Hold” rating on SLR Investment, with two sells, four holds and two buys; the average 12-month price target is $14.10.
• Insider Michael Gross bought 20,000 shares for approximately $247,000, while institutional investors own 35.32% of the company’s stock.
• SLR Investment reported quarterly EPS of $0.33, in line with estimates, and announced a $0.31 quarterly dividend—an annualized $1.24 payout yielding about 10.3%.

SLR Investment Corp. (NASDAQ:SLRC - Get Free Report) has been given a consensus recommendation of "Hold" by the eight analysts that are covering the stock, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, four have issued a hold recommendation and two have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month price target among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $14.10.

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Zacks Research raised shares of SLR Investment from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, August 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on shares of SLR Investment from $13.50 to $12.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, July 2nd. B. Riley Financial lowered shares of SLR Investment from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 11th. Finally, Weiss Ratings cut shares of SLR Investment from a "hold (c)" rating to a "hold (c-)" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 28th.

Insider Buying and Selling at SLR Investment

In related news, insider Michael Gross acquired 20,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 10th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $12.35 per share, for a total transaction of $247,000.00. Following the purchase, the insider owned 4,065,153 shares in the company, valued at $50,204,639.55. This trade represents a 0.49% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Company insiders own 8.80% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On SLR Investment

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of SLRC. Closed End Fund Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in shares of SLR Investment during the 4th quarter worth $4,033,000. UBS Group AG increased its stake in SLR Investment by 15.5% in the fourth quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 577,728 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $8,932,000 after acquiring an additional 77,705 shares during the last quarter. BlackRock Inc. bought a new position in SLR Investment in the second quarter valued at $2,513,000. Clear Harbor Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in SLR Investment during the second quarter valued at about $4,205,000. Finally, NewEdge Wealth LLC bought a new stake in SLR Investment during the second quarter worth about $1,256,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 35.32% of the company's stock.

SLR Investment Trading Down 1.9%

Shares of SLR Investment stock opened at $12.08 on Friday. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $12.79 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $13.54. SLR Investment has a 52 week low of $11.98 and a 52 week high of $16.48. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17, a quick ratio of 1.09 and a current ratio of 1.09. The stock has a market capitalization of $659.08 million, a PE ratio of 8.95 and a beta of 0.64.

SLR Investment (NASDAQ:SLRC - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 4th. The financial services provider reported $0.33 EPS for the quarter, hitting analysts' consensus estimates of $0.33. SLR Investment had a return on equity of 7.96% and a net margin of 35.20%.The firm had revenue of $20.50 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $48.82 million. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that SLR Investment will post 1.31 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

SLR Investment Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 25th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 11th will be paid a $0.31 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 11th. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 10.3%. SLR Investment's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 91.85%.

About SLR Investment

SLR Investment Corp. NASDAQ: SLRC is a closed‐end, externally managed business development company that provides customized debt and equity financing solutions to middle‐market companies. The firm seeks to generate current income and capital appreciation by investing primarily in senior secured loans, second lien financings, mezzanine debt and equity co‐investments. Its flexible capital approach allows it to structure financing across the capital structure to address a range of sponsor‐backed transactions.

SLR Investment Corp.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.