Short Interest in Main Street Capital Co. (NYSE:MAIN) Expands By 36.2%

Main Street Capital Co. (NYSE:MAIN - Get Free Report) was the target of a large growth in short interest in the month of May. As of May 15th, there was short interest totalling 5,120,000 shares, a growth of 36.2% from the April 30th total of 3,760,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 642,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 8.0 days. Currently, 6.0% of the company's shares are short sold.

Main Street Capital Stock Performance

Main Street Capital stock traded up $0.06 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $56.71. 401,130 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 466,563. The stock has a market cap of $5.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.27 and a beta of 0.86. The firm's 50 day moving average is $54.12 and its 200 day moving average is $56.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13, a quick ratio of 0.08 and a current ratio of 0.08. Main Street Capital has a 52-week low of $45.00 and a 52-week high of $63.32.

Main Street Capital (NYSE:MAIN - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 8th. The financial services provider reported $1.01 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.00 by $0.01. Main Street Capital had a return on equity of 13.83% and a net margin of 89.25%. The firm had revenue of $137.05 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $137.50 million. Analysts predict that Main Street Capital will post 4.11 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Main Street Capital Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a monthly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 8th will be issued a $0.255 dividend. This represents a $3.06 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.40%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 8th. This is an increase from Main Street Capital's previous monthly dividend of $0.25. Main Street Capital's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 50.93%.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Dwayne L. Hyzak sold 120,000 shares of Main Street Capital stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $58.05, for a total value of $6,966,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 402,371 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $23,357,636.55. The trade was a 22.97% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider David L. Magdol sold 100,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $58.05, for a total value of $5,805,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 377,182 shares in the company, valued at $21,895,415.10. This represents a 20.96% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 4.00% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Main Street Capital

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Asset Planning Inc purchased a new position in Main Street Capital in the fourth quarter valued at about $29,000. Financial Network Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Main Street Capital in the 1st quarter worth approximately $39,000. Spire Wealth Management purchased a new position in Main Street Capital in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $40,000. Wellington Shields & Co. LLC acquired a new position in Main Street Capital during the first quarter worth $41,000. Finally, Kapitalo Investimentos Ltda purchased a new stake in Main Street Capital during the fourth quarter worth $45,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 20.31% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have commented on MAIN shares. Truist Financial dropped their price target on shares of Main Street Capital from $62.00 to $54.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, May 12th. UBS Group cut their price objective on shares of Main Street Capital from $55.00 to $54.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 17th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Main Street Capital from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Saturday, May 31st. Finally, Oppenheimer reaffirmed a "market perform" rating on shares of Main Street Capital in a report on Tuesday, May 13th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Main Street Capital has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $52.80.

Main Street Capital Company Profile

Main Street Capital Corporation is a business development company specializes in equity capital to lower middle market companies. The firm specializing in recapitalizations, management buyouts, refinancing, family estate planning, management buyouts, refinancing, industry consolidation, mature, later stage emerging growth.