Saratoga Investment (NYSE:SAR) Stock Rating Lowered by Zacks Research

Key Points

• Zacks Research downgraded Saratoga Investment from “hold” to “strong sell”, adding to a wave of cautious analyst sentiment on the stock.
• Other firms also turned more negative or trimmed expectations, including B. Riley and Oppenheimer lowering price targets; the consensus rating is now “Reduce” with an average price target of $21.50.
• The company also reported weaker-than-expected quarterly results, with EPS of $0.47 versus the $0.54 estimate and revenue well below forecasts, even as the stock traded up 4.0% on Thursday.

Saratoga Investment (NYSE:SAR - Get Free Report) was downgraded by equities research analysts at Zacks Research from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a report released on Thursday,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other research firms have also commented on SAR. B. Riley Financial lowered their price objective on shares of Saratoga Investment from $23.00 to $22.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday. Wall Street Zen downgraded Saratoga Investment from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Saturday, May 9th. Oppenheimer decreased their price target on Saratoga Investment from $22.00 to $21.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday. Finally, Weiss Ratings cut Saratoga Investment from a "hold (c)" rating to a "hold (c-)" rating in a research report on Wednesday. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Reduce" and an average price target of $21.50.

Saratoga Investment Trading Up 4.0%

Shares of Saratoga Investment stock opened at $18.15 on Thursday. The business's fifty day moving average is $22.02 and its two-hundred day moving average is $22.60. The firm has a market cap of $296.03 million, a PE ratio of 18.15 and a beta of 0.54. The company has a quick ratio of 0.04, a current ratio of 0.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18. Saratoga Investment has a fifty-two week low of $17.34 and a fifty-two week high of $25.64.

Saratoga Investment (NYSE:SAR - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, July 7th. The financial services provider reported $0.47 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.54 by ($0.07). Saratoga Investment had a net margin of 12.70% and a return on equity of 8.76%. The company had revenue of ($12.15) million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $31.38 million. Analysts anticipate that Saratoga Investment will post 2.03 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Trading of Saratoga Investment

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Focus Financial Network Inc. boosted its holdings in Saratoga Investment by 19.1% during the second quarter. Focus Financial Network Inc. now owns 25,218 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $563,000 after buying an additional 4,042 shares in the last quarter. Western Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Saratoga Investment in the first quarter valued at $70,000. Bank of America Corp DE increased its holdings in shares of Saratoga Investment by 2,243.4% in the first quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 25,027 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $547,000 after buying an additional 23,959 shares in the last quarter. Royal Bank of Canada lifted its position in shares of Saratoga Investment by 3.2% during the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 17,950 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $393,000 after acquiring an additional 557 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Cetera Investment Advisers lifted its position in shares of Saratoga Investment by 2.2% during the 1st quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 22,301 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $488,000 after acquiring an additional 476 shares during the last quarter. 19.09% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Saratoga Investment Company Profile

Saratoga Investment Corp. is a closed-end, externally managed investment company that seeks to generate current income and total return through a diversified portfolio of private U.S. companies. Trading on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker SAR, the firm primarily targets middle-market businesses across a broad range of industries, including industrials, healthcare, consumer products, financial services and technology. Its investment approach combines debt and equity instruments, providing flexible capital solutions such as first-lien and second-lien secured loans, mezzanine debt, preferred equity and common equity positions.

As an actively managed vehicle, Saratoga Investment works closely with portfolio companies’ management teams to support growth initiatives, operational improvements, and strategic transactions.

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