Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending (NYSE:NCDL) Hits New 1-Year Low - Time to Sell?

Key Points

• Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending (NYSE:NCDL) hit a new 52-week low, falling to about $12.43 and slipping roughly 3.3% on the day.
• Analysts have turned more cautious, with Wells Fargo downgrading the stock to underweight and several firms cutting price targets; the current consensus rating is Hold with an average target price of $15.15.
• The company recently reported mixed quarterly results—earnings missed estimates by a penny and revenue fell well short of expectations—though it continues to pay a high quarterly dividend of $0.36 per share, implying an annualized yield of about 11.7%.

Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending Corp. (NYSE:NCDL - Get Free Report)'s share price reached a new 52-week low on Monday . The stock traded as low as $12.43 and last traded at $12.4150, with a volume of 109812 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $12.77.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company downgraded shares of Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending from an "equal weight" rating to an "underweight" rating and cut their price target for the stock from $13.00 to $12.00 in a report on Friday. Zacks Research lowered Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 26th. Truist Financial cut 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 note on Wednesday, March 4th. UBS Group reduced their target price on Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending from $15.50 to $14.75 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, May 18th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price target on Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending from $16.00 to $15.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 27th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $15.15.

Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending Stock Down 3.3%

The business's 50-day simple moving average is $13.47 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $13.62. The firm has a market capitalization of $609.97 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.29 and a beta of 0.51.

Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending (NYSE:NCDL - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 7th. The company reported $0.41 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.42 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $17.15 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $47.79 million. Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending had a return on equity of 9.80% and a net margin of 29.56%. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending Corp. will post 1.6 earnings per share for the current year.

Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 28th. Investors of record on Tuesday, June 30th will be paid a dividend of $0.36 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, June 30th. This represents a $1.44 annualized dividend and a yield of 11.7%. Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending's dividend payout ratio is presently 120.00%.

Insider Transactions at Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending

In other news, Treasurer Shaul Vichness bought 5,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 14th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $13.20 per share, with a total value of $66,000.00. Following the transaction, the treasurer directly owned 30,705 shares in the company, valued at $405,306. The trade was a 19.45% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CAO Marissa Hassen purchased 3,782 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 12th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $13.21 per share, for a total transaction of $49,960.22. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief accounting officer directly 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. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. Company insiders own 0.68% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in NCDL. UBS Group AG raised its position in Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending by 40.0% in the 4th quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 689,050 shares of the company's stock valued at $9,192,000 after purchasing an additional 196,956 shares in the last quarter. Closed End Fund Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending during the fourth quarter worth about $7,374,000. Vise Technologies Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending during the fourth quarter worth approximately $1,271,000. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending by 14.5% during the fourth quarter. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. now owns 479,357 shares of the company's stock worth $6,395,000 after buying an additional 60,786 shares during the period. Finally, Callodine Capital Management LP raised its holdings in Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending by 9.1% in the third quarter. Callodine Capital Management LP now owns 572,800 shares of the company's stock valued at $7,905,000 after acquiring an additional 47,800 shares in the last quarter.

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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