SLR Investment Corp. (NASDAQ:SLRC) Given Average Rating of "Reduce" by Brokerages

Key Points

• Analyst sentiment is cautious: SLR Investment Corp. has an average rating of “Reduce” from seven analysts, with three sells, two holds, and two buys. The average 12-month price target is $14.40.
• Latest results missed expectations: The company reported quarterly EPS of $0.33 versus the $0.40 consensus, and revenue of $47.14 million fell short of estimates. Analysts currently expect full-year EPS of 1.33.
• Stock and dividend details: Shares were trading near $12.92, close to the 52-week low of $12.82, and the company declared a $0.31 quarterly dividend, implying a 9.6% annualized yield. The payout ratio is currently 100%.

SLR Investment Corp. (NASDAQ:SLRC - Get Free Report) has earned an average rating of "Reduce" from the seven ratings firms that are currently covering the company, Marketbeat reports. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. The average 12-month price target among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $14.40.

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on SLRC. Zacks Research lowered SLR Investment from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Compass Point raised shares of SLR Investment from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $16.50 target price on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, March 10th. Wall Street Zen cut shares of SLR Investment from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Saturday, May 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on shares of SLR Investment from $14.00 to $13.50 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Finally, Raymond James Financial set a $16.00 target price on shares of SLR Investment and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 25th.

SLR Investment Trading Down 2.5%

Shares of SLRC opened at $12.92 on Thursday. SLR Investment has a 52-week low of $12.82 and a 52-week high of $17.19. The business's fifty day moving average is $14.32 and its 200-day moving average is $14.86. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a current ratio of 1.04. The firm has a market cap of $704.92 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.88 and a beta of 0.64.

SLR Investment (NASDAQ:SLRC - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The financial services provider reported $0.33 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.40 by ($0.07). SLR Investment had a net margin of 41.81% and a return on equity of 8.33%. The business had revenue of $47.14 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $54.01 million. Equities analysts anticipate that SLR Investment will post 1.33 EPS for the current fiscal year.

SLR Investment Cuts Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 26th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 12th will be paid a dividend of $0.31 per share. This represents a $1.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 9.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 12th. SLR Investment's payout ratio is presently 100.00%.

Insider Activity at SLR Investment

In other SLR Investment news, insider Michael S. Gross purchased 25,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 13th. The shares were bought at an average price of $13.91 per share, for a total transaction of $347,750.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the insider owned 4,014,701 shares in the company, valued at approximately $55,844,490.91. This trade represents a 0.63% 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 link. Insiders have acquired a total of 45,452 shares of company stock worth $623,933 in the last quarter. 8.80% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On SLR Investment

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Inspire Investing LLC lifted its holdings in shares of SLR Investment by 2.3% during the fourth quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 30,238 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $467,000 after purchasing an additional 688 shares during the period. Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of SLR Investment by 2.3% during the fourth quarter. Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC now owns 31,299 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $474,000 after purchasing an additional 700 shares during the period. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of SLR Investment by 4.3% during the third quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 19,902 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $304,000 after purchasing an additional 824 shares during the period. NewEdge Wealth LLC lifted its holdings in shares of SLR Investment by 0.9% during the fourth quarter. NewEdge Wealth LLC now owns 96,455 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,491,000 after purchasing an additional 881 shares during the period. Finally, Flagship Harbor Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of SLR Investment by 4.9% during the third quarter. Flagship Harbor Advisors LLC now owns 19,677 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $301,000 after purchasing an additional 915 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 35.32% of the company's stock.

SLR Investment Company Profile

SLR Investment Corp. NASDAQ: SLRC is a closed‐end, externally managed business development company that provides customized debt and equity financing solutions to middle‐market companies. The firm seeks to generate current income and capital appreciation by investing primarily in senior secured loans, second lien financings, mezzanine debt and equity co‐investments. Its flexible capital approach allows it to structure financing across the capital structure to address a range of sponsor‐backed transactions.

SLR Investment Corp.

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