UBS Group AG Grows Stake in Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending Corp. $NCDL

Key Points

• UBS Group AG increased its stake in Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending by 40% in the fourth quarter, bringing its holdings to 689,050 shares worth about $9.19 million.
• Analysts remain cautious overall, with the stock carrying a consensus “Hold” rating and an average price target of $15.50 despite a few buy ratings.
• The company reported mixed fundamentals: it missed quarterly EPS and revenue estimates, but announced a $0.36 quarterly dividend that implies a 10.9% yield.

UBS Group AG grew its holdings in Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending Corp. (NYSE:NCDL - Free Report) by 40.0% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 689,050 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 196,956 shares during the quarter. UBS Group AG owned approximately 1.40% of Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending worth $9,192,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the business. Quent Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending in the 4th quarter worth approximately $267,000. Quent Long Short Global Small Cap Fund LP bought a new position in shares of Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending in the 4th quarter worth approximately $267,000. GraniteShares Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending by 6.7% in the 4th quarter. GraniteShares Advisors LLC now owns 195,441 shares of the company's stock worth $2,607,000 after acquiring an additional 12,224 shares in the last quarter. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending by 5.0% in the 4th quarter. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 551,974 shares of the company's stock worth $7,363,000 after acquiring an additional 26,454 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending by 14.5% in the 4th quarter. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. now owns 479,357 shares of the company's stock worth $6,395,000 after acquiring an additional 60,786 shares in the last quarter.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on NCDL shares. Wall Street Zen raised Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Sunday. UBS Group increased their target price on Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending from $14.75 to $15.50 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, April 20th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending from $14.00 to $13.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, March 4th. Truist Financial decreased their target price on Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending from $18.00 to $16.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, March 4th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their target price on Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending from $16.00 to $15.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 27th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $15.50.

Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending Trading Up 0.7%

Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending stock opened at $13.26 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $654.76 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.05 and a beta of 0.63. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $13.56 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $13.82. Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending Corp. has a 12 month low of $12.43 and a 12 month high of $17.27.

Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending (NYSE:NCDL - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The company reported $0.41 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.42 by ($0.01). Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending had a return on equity of 9.80% and a net margin of 29.56%.The firm had revenue of $17.15 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $47.79 million. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending Corp. will post 1.66 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 28th. Investors of record on Tuesday, June 30th will be issued a $0.36 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, June 30th. This represents a $1.44 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 10.9%. Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending's payout ratio is presently 120.00%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CAO Marissa Hassen bought 3,782 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 12th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $13.21 per share, for a total transaction of $49,960.22. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 9,780 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $129,193.80. This trade represents a 63.05% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Mat Linett bought 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 6th. The shares were bought at an average price of $13.05 per share, for a total transaction of $26,100.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 10,365 shares of the company's stock, valued at $135,263.25. This represents a 23.91% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have purchased a total of 56,329 shares of company stock valued at $751,066 over the last ninety days. 0.68% of the stock is owned by insiders.

About Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending

Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending NYSE: NCDL is a closed-end management investment company that seeks to provide shareholders with attractive risk-adjusted returns through a diversified portfolio of direct lending instruments. Established in early 2022, NCDL focuses on privately negotiated debt investments in middle-market companies, primarily within the United States. The fund offers investors access to a segment of the credit markets that has historically been less correlated with public debt markets, aiming to capture yield premiums associated with private lending.

The fund’s investment strategy centers on senior secured loans, unitranche financings and selectively structured mezzanine debt.

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