Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending (NYSE:NCDL) Trading Up 1.6% - What's Next?

Key Points

• Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending (NYSE:NCDL) shares rose 1.6% to about $13.00, with trading volume running well above average. The stock’s recent move came despite mixed broader technical signals, including a 50-day average near $12.79 and a 200-day average around $13.30.
• Analyst sentiment has turned more cautious: multiple firms recently cut their ratings, and the consensus from MarketBeat is now a "Reduce" with an average price target of $14.44. Wells Fargo also lowered its target to $12.00 and rated the stock underweight.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.36 per share, payable July 28, implying an annualized yield of 11.1%. However, the payout ratio is high at 120%, and the latest earnings missed estimates on both EPS and revenue.

Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending Corp. (NYSE:NCDL - Get Free Report) shares traded up 1.6% on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $13.05 and last traded at $12.9950. 252,564 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 41% from the average daily volume of 179,228 shares. The stock had previously closed at $12.79.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Zacks Research lowered shares of Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 26th. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Saturday, June 6th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered shares of Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending from an "equal weight" rating to an "underweight" rating and lowered their price target for the company from $13.00 to $12.00 in a report on Friday, June 12th. Finally, UBS Group dropped their price objective on shares of Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending from $15.50 to $14.75 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, May 18th. One analyst has 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 MarketBeat, Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending has a consensus rating of "Reduce" and an average price target of $14.44.

Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending Stock Up 1.6%

The firm has a fifty day moving average of $12.79 and a 200-day moving average of $13.30. The firm has a market cap of $641.82 million, a P/E ratio of 10.83 and a beta of 0.51.

Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending (NYSE:NCDL - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 7th. The company reported $0.41 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate 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 for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $47.79 million. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending Corp. will post 1.6 EPS for the current year.

Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 28th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 30th will be given a dividend of $0.36 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, June 30th. This represents a $1.44 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 11.1%. Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending's payout ratio is currently 120.00%.

Insider Activity at Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending

In other Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending news, VP John Mccally bought 7,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, May 15th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $13.27 per share, with a total value of $99,525.00. Following the acquisition, the vice president owned 15,245 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $202,301.15. The trade was a 96.84% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CAO Marissa Hassen bought 3,782 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 12th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $13.21 per share, with a total value of $49,960.22. Following the acquisition, the chief accounting officer directly owned 9,780 shares in the company, valued at approximately $129,193.80. This trade represents a 63.05% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have acquired 16,282 shares of company stock worth $215,485 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.68% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in NCDL. BNP Paribas Financial Markets grew its stake in shares of Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending by 190.2% during the third quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 2,400 shares of the company's stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 1,573 shares during the period. Advisory Services Network LLC bought a new stake in Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending in the third quarter valued at about $38,000. NewEdge Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending by 33.0% in the second quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 4,511 shares of the company's stock valued at $73,000 after buying an additional 1,118 shares during the period. Quadrant Capital Group LLC acquired a new position in Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending in the third quarter valued at about $80,000. Finally, State of Wyoming bought a new position in Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending during the second quarter worth about $108,000.

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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