CION Investment Corporation (NYSE:CION) Shares Will Pay Monthly Dividend of $0.10

Key Points

• CION Investment declared a monthly dividend of $0.10 per share, payable October 30 to shareholders of record October 16. The dividend implies $1.20 in annualized payments and a 17.7% yield.
• The dividend’s sustainability is a concern: the current payout ratio is 95.2%, while projected earnings suggest it could rise to 127.7% next year.
• CION shares opened at $6.79, below the analysts’ average price target of $6.50 after mixed ratings. The company nevertheless exceeded quarterly earnings expectations, reporting $0.29 per share versus the $0.26 consensus estimate.

CION Investment Corporation (NYSE:CION - Get Free Report) declared a monthly dividend on Monday, August 3rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 16th will be paid a dividend of $0.10 per share on Friday, October 30th. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 17.7%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 16th.

CION Investment has a dividend payout ratio of 95.2% meaning its dividend is currently covered by earnings, but may not be in the future if the company's earnings tumble. Analysts expect CION Investment to earn $0.94 per share next year, which means the company may not be able to cover its $1.20 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 127.7%.

CION Investment Stock Down 1.2%

Shares of CION stock opened at $6.79 on Wednesday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $7.21 and a 200 day moving average price of $6.91. The firm has a market cap of $334.31 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 4.22 and a beta of 1.15. CION Investment has a 12 month low of $5.83 and a 12 month high of $10.40.

CION Investment (NYSE:CION - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 5th. The company reported $0.29 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.26 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $49.79 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $49.78 million. CION Investment had a return on equity of 11.95% and a net margin of 1.17%. Sell-side analysts predict that CION Investment will post 1.08 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Zacks Research downgraded shares of CION Investment from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 29th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of CION Investment from a "sell (d+)" rating to a "hold (c-)" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 11th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, CION Investment presently has an average rating of "Reduce" and an average price target of $6.50.

About CION Investment

CION Investment Corporation NYSE: CION is an externally managed business development company that invests primarily in privately held, middle-market companies. The company seeks to generate current income and, to a lesser extent, capital appreciation by investing in debt and equity securities.

CION's portfolio is focused primarily on senior secured loans, including first-lien and second-lien loans, as well as other debt investments. It may also invest in subordinated debt, unsecured debt and equity interests when appropriate.

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