New Mountain Finance Corporation (NASDAQ:NMFC) Given Average Rating of "Reduce" by Analysts

Key Points

• Analysts give New Mountain Finance an average recommendation of "Reduce" (2 sell, 5 hold) with a 12‑month consensus target price of $9.25.
• The firm pays a quarterly dividend of $0.32 (annualized $1.28) for a 15.2% yield
• Insiders have been active buyers recently — executives purchased shares and insiders acquired roughly 1.2M shares (~$9.66M) over the past 90 days, with insiders owning about 14.9% of the stock.

New Mountain Finance Corporation (NASDAQ:NMFC - Get Free Report) has earned an average recommendation of "Reduce" from the seven ratings firms that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation and five have assigned a hold recommendation to the company. The average 12-month target price among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $9.25.

Several research firms recently weighed in on NMFC. Weiss Ratings restated a "hold (c-)" rating on shares of New Mountain Finance in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. Wall Street Zen raised shares of New Mountain Finance from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Sunday, April 5th. B. Riley Financial cut their price target on New Mountain Finance from $10.00 to $7.50 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, March 3rd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price target on New Mountain Finance from $10.00 to $9.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, March 4th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on shares of New Mountain Finance from $10.00 to $8.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 26th.

New Mountain Finance Stock Performance

Shares of NMFC stock opened at $8.45 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $831.92 million, a P/E ratio of 56.30 and a beta of 0.54. New Mountain Finance has a fifty-two week low of $7.47 and a fifty-two week high of $11.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41, a quick ratio of 3.16 and a current ratio of 3.16. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $8.01 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $8.82.

New Mountain Finance Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 17th were given a dividend of $0.32 per share. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 15.2%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, March 17th. New Mountain Finance's payout ratio is 853.33%.

Insider Transactions at New Mountain Finance

In related news, COO Laura C. Holson Boswerger acquired 12,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 27th. The shares were bought at an average price of $7.74 per share, with a total value of $96,750.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 81,030 shares in the company, valued at $627,172.20. This trade represents a 18.24% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Adam B. Weinstein acquired 12,900 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 17th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $7.61 per share, for a total transaction of $98,169.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 751,756 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,720,863.16. The trade was a 1.75% increase in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. Over the last ninety days, insiders acquired 1,200,673 shares of company stock worth $9,662,634. 14.90% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On New Mountain Finance

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of NMFC. Mackenzie Financial Corp raised its position in shares of New Mountain Finance by 3.7% in the 3rd quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 31,306 shares of the company's stock valued at $302,000 after purchasing an additional 1,126 shares during the last quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co grew its position in New Mountain Finance by 2.8% during the 2nd quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co now owns 95,805 shares of the company's stock worth $1,013,000 after purchasing an additional 2,634 shares during the last quarter. Advyzon Investment Management LLC increased its stake in New Mountain Finance by 25.3% during the 4th quarter. Advyzon Investment Management LLC now owns 16,080 shares of the company's stock valued at $148,000 after purchasing an additional 3,246 shares in the last quarter. Next Capital Management LLC increased its stake in New Mountain Finance by 13.5% during the 4th quarter. Next Capital Management LLC now owns 29,680 shares of the company's stock valued at $273,000 after purchasing an additional 3,530 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Inspire Investing LLC raised its holdings in shares of New Mountain Finance by 8.5% in the fourth quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 50,906 shares of the company's stock worth $469,000 after buying an additional 4,000 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 32.08% of the company's stock.

About New Mountain Finance

New Mountain Finance Corp. is a closed-end, externally managed business development company (BDC) that provides customized debt and equity capital solutions to U.S. middle-market companies. As a BDC organized under the Investment Company Act of 1940, New Mountain Finance invests in sponsor-backed and founder-led businesses that span a range of industry sectors, with a focus on companies demonstrating resilient growth and recurring revenue streams.

The company's investment portfolio typically includes first-lien senior secured loans, second-lien and junior debt instruments, mezzanine financing and equity co-investments.

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.