Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending (NYSE:NCDL) Upgraded by Wall Street Zen to "Hold" Rating

Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending (NYSE:NCDL - Free Report) from a sell rating to a hold rating in a research report sent to investors on Sunday morning.

Other equities analysts have also issued reports about the stock. JMP Securities dropped their price target on shares of Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending from $18.50 to $18.00 and set a "market outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, June 24th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on shares of Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending from $15.00 to $14.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, May 13th. UBS Group restated a "neutral" rating and set a $17.50 target price (up previously from $16.50) on shares of Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their target price on shares of Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending from $18.00 to $17.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $16.63.

Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending Trading Down 0.7%

Shares of NCDL traded down $0.12 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $17.00. 107,691 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 208,498. The company's fifty day moving average price is $16.29 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $16.50. The company has a market capitalization of $854.76 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.09 and a beta of 0.48. The company has a quick ratio of 1.79, a current ratio of 1.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.30. Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending has a 12 month low of $14.21 and a 12 month high of $18.01.

Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending (NYSE:NCDL - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, May 8th. The company reported $0.53 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.57 by ($0.04). The firm had revenue of $53.59 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $56.01 million. Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending had a return on equity of 12.42% and a net margin of 44.83%. Equities research analysts predict that Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending will post 2.28 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 28th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 30th will be issued a $0.45 dividend. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 10.59%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 30th. Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending's dividend payout ratio is currently 96.26%.

Insider Activity at Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending

In related news, Director Mat Linett bought 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 21st. The stock was bought at an average cost of $15.92 per share, for a total transaction of $47,760.00. Following the purchase, the director directly owned 8,365 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $133,170.80. This trade represents a 55.92% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Kenneth J. Kencel bought 16,234 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 12th. The stock was bought at an average price of $15.34 per share, with a total value of $249,029.56. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer directly owned 28,117 shares in the company, valued at $431,314.78. This represents a 136.62% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders have purchased 27,337 shares of company stock valued at $426,945 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.62% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of NCDL. Nuveen LLC acquired a new position in shares of Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending in the 1st quarter valued at $8,292,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its stake in shares of Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending by 94.3% in the 4th quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 751,442 shares of the company's stock valued at $12,609,000 after purchasing an additional 364,739 shares during the period. Millennium Management LLC increased its holdings in Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending by 361.6% in the 4th quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 437,992 shares of the company's stock worth $7,350,000 after acquiring an additional 343,113 shares in the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC increased its holdings in Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending by 364.4% in the 1st quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 342,773 shares of the company's stock worth $5,820,000 after acquiring an additional 268,968 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company MN increased its holdings in Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending by 2,468.4% in the 4th quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 267,709 shares of the company's stock worth $4,492,000 after acquiring an additional 257,286 shares in the last quarter.

Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending Company Profile

Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending Corp. is a specialty finance company focused primarily on investing in senior secured loans to private equity-owned U.S. middle market companies. It has elected to be regulated as a business development company. Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending Corp. is based in NEW YORK.