Prospect Capital Corporation $PSEC Shares Purchased by Private Management Group Inc.

Key Points

• Private Management Group increased its Prospect Capital stake by 6.4%, adding about 1.32 million shares to hold 21.86 million shares, or 4.09% of the company.
• Analyst sentiment is largely negative: the stock carries an average “Sell” rating and a $1.50 price target. PSEC opened at $1.51, well below its 50- and 200-day moving averages.
• Prospect Capital beat quarterly earnings-per-share estimates ($0.15 versus $0.10), but revenue came in below forecasts. It declared a monthly dividend of $0.035 per share, equivalent to a reported annualized yield of 27.8%.

Private Management Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Prospect Capital Corporation (NASDAQ:PSEC - Free Report) by 6.4% during the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 21,857,191 shares of the financial services provider's stock after buying an additional 1,322,387 shares during the quarter. Prospect Capital comprises approximately 1.1% of Private Management Group Inc.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 12th biggest holding. Private Management Group Inc. owned 4.09% of Prospect Capital worth $45,463,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in PSEC. 180 Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Prospect Capital by 18.9% in the third quarter. 180 Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 690,788 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,437,000 after purchasing an additional 109,802 shares during the period. Asset Dedication LLC purchased a new position in shares of Prospect Capital in the third quarter worth about $39,000. Claro Advisors Inc. raised its stake in shares of Prospect Capital by 7.8% in the third quarter. Claro Advisors Inc. now owns 207,700 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $432,000 after purchasing an additional 15,000 shares during the last quarter. Integrity Advisory Solutions LLC purchased a new position in shares of Prospect Capital in the third quarter worth about $29,000. Finally, GraniteShares Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Prospect Capital by 1.6% during the third quarter. GraniteShares Advisors LLC now owns 1,111,550 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $2,312,000 after purchasing an additional 17,190 shares during the period. 9.06% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on the company. Zacks Research upgraded Prospect Capital to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, October 5th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on shares of Prospect Capital from $2.00 to $1.50 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a research report on Friday. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Prospect Capital from a "sell (d+)" rating to a "sell (d)" rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 26th. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut shares of Prospect Capital from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 22nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Prospect Capital presently has an average rating of "Sell" and an average price target of $1.50.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO John Barry. III purchased 1,217,105 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, September 4th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $2.24 per share, with a total value of $2,726,315.20. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief executive officer owned 90,479,988 shares of the company's stock, valued at $202,675,173.12. The trade was a 1.36% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 25.94% of the company's stock.

Prospect Capital Price Performance

Shares of PSEC opened at $1.51 on Tuesday. The business's 50-day moving average is $1.88 and its two-hundred day moving average is $2.33. The company has a market capitalization of $806.07 million, a P/E ratio of -10.07 and a beta of 0.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64, a quick ratio of 0.87 and a current ratio of 0.87. Prospect Capital Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $1.29 and a fifty-two week high of $3.12.

Prospect Capital (NASDAQ:PSEC - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 4th. The financial services provider reported $0.15 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.10 by $0.05. Prospect Capital had a return on equity of 13.19% and a net margin of 3.80%. The business had revenue of $151.74 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $163.14 million. Research analysts predict that Prospect Capital Corporation will post 0.38 earnings per share for the current year.

Prospect Capital Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a monthly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, February 17th. Investors of record on Wednesday, January 27th will be given a dividend of $0.0350 per share. This represents a $0.42 annualized dividend and a yield of 27.8%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, January 27th. Prospect Capital's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently -280.00%.

Prospect Capital Profile

Prospect Capital Corporation is a business development company that provides financing to middle-market businesses. Its investments include senior and subordinated debt, structured finance, and equity securities.

The company works with businesses seeking capital for purposes such as growth, acquisitions, recapitalizations, and refinancing. Its portfolio spans a range of industries, with investments primarily in companies in the United States.

Founded in 2004, Prospect Capital is externally managed by Prospect Capital Management L.P.

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