SLR Investment Corp. (NASDAQ:SLRC) Sees Large Drop in Short Interest

SLR Investment Corp. (NASDAQ:SLRC - Get Free Report) was the target of a large decline in short interest during the month of April. As of April 15th, there was short interest totalling 246,300 shares, a decline of 28.7% from the March 31st total of 345,400 shares. Currently, 0.5% of the shares of the company are sold short. Based on an average trading volume of 205,600 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 1.2 days.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

SLRC has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Compass Point raised their price objective on SLR Investment from $16.50 to $17.25 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on shares of SLR Investment from $16.50 to $15.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price objective on shares of SLR Investment from $16.00 to $17.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on SLR Investment from $13.00 to $12.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 28th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and four have assigned a hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $15.65.

SLR Investment Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:SLRC traded down $0.25 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $15.40. The stock had a trading volume of 74,969 shares, compared to its average volume of 163,507. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 1.06 and a current ratio of 1.06. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $16.25 and its 200 day simple moving average is $16.37. The firm has a market capitalization of $840.22 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.70 and a beta of 0.90. SLR Investment has a 1-year low of $13.64 and a 1-year high of $17.94.

SLR Investment (NASDAQ:SLRC - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 25th. The financial services provider reported $0.44 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.43 by $0.01. SLR Investment had a return on equity of 9.73% and a net margin of 40.89%. The company had revenue of $55.58 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $57.08 million. Sell-side analysts anticipate that SLR Investment will post 1.76 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

SLR Investment Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th were given a dividend of $0.41 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 14th. This represents a $1.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 10.65%. SLR Investment's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 93.71%.

Institutional Trading of SLR Investment

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Denali Advisors LLC lifted its position in SLR Investment by 7.5% in the first quarter. Denali Advisors LLC now owns 132,725 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $2,238,000 after purchasing an additional 9,229 shares during the period. Muzinich & Co. Inc. boosted its stake in SLR Investment by 22.7% during the first quarter. Muzinich & Co. Inc. now owns 178,095 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $3,003,000 after buying an additional 32,971 shares in the last quarter. Apollon Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in SLR Investment during the first quarter worth about $286,000. MQS Management LLC bought a new stake in SLR Investment in the first quarter worth about $570,000. Finally, Pekin Hardy Strauss Inc. lifted its holdings in SLR Investment by 6.7% in the 1st quarter. Pekin Hardy Strauss Inc. now owns 98,535 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,661,000 after acquiring an additional 6,200 shares during the last quarter. 35.32% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About SLR Investment

SLR Investment Corp. is a business development company specializing in secured debt (first lien unitranche and second lien), subordinated (unsecured) debt, minority equity, leveraged buyouts, acquisitions, recapitalizations, general refinancing, growth capital and strategic income-oriented control equity investments in leveraged middle market companies.