SLR Investment (NASDAQ:SLRC) Stock Rating Lowered by Wall Street Zen

Key Points

• Wall Street Zen downgraded SLR Investment from hold to sell, adding to a mixed analyst backdrop for the stock. Overall, MarketBeat data shows a Hold consensus with an average price target of $15.07.
• The stock was down 1.2% and opened at $13.49, near its 52-week low of $13.41. SLR Investment also trades below both its 50-day and 200-day moving averages.
• The company missed quarterly earnings estimates, reporting $0.33 EPS versus the expected $0.40, and revenue of $47.14 million versus estimates of $54.01 million. Despite that, insider buying and continued institutional ownership suggest some investor support.

SLR Investment (NASDAQ:SLRC - Get Free Report) was downgraded by equities researchers at Wall Street Zen from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report released on Saturday.

Several other research analysts have also commented on the stock. Raymond James Financial set a $16.00 price target on shares of SLR Investment and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 25th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price target on shares of SLR Investment from $16.50 to $15.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a report on Monday, March 30th. Compass Point raised shares of SLR Investment from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $16.50 price target for the company in a report on Tuesday, March 10th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on shares of SLR Investment from $12.00 to $11.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on shares of SLR Investment from $14.00 to $13.50 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have given a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, SLR Investment has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $15.07.

SLR Investment Trading Down 1.2%

NASDAQ SLRC opened at $13.49 on Friday. SLR Investment has a one year low of $13.41 and a one year high of $17.19. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $14.83 and a 200-day simple moving average of $15.14. 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 capitalization of $736.01 million, a PE ratio of 8.23 and a beta of 0.71.

SLR Investment (NASDAQ:SLRC - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The financial services provider reported $0.33 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 analyst estimates of $54.01 million. On average, equities analysts forecast that SLR Investment will post 1.62 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at SLR Investment

In other SLR Investment news, insider Michael S. Gross bought 10,452 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 16th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $13.90 per share, for a total transaction of $145,282.80. Following the acquisition, the insider directly owned 4,025,153 shares of the company's stock, valued at $55,949,626.70. This trade represents a 0.26% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. 8.80% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of SLR Investment

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its holdings in shares of SLR Investment by 1.1% in the 4th quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 1,357,679 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $20,990,000 after purchasing an additional 15,264 shares in the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp raised its holdings in shares of SLR Investment by 6.7% in the 3rd quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 1,195,136 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $18,274,000 after purchasing an additional 74,983 shares in the last quarter. UBS Group AG raised its holdings in shares of SLR Investment by 15.5% in the 4th quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 577,728 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $8,932,000 after purchasing an additional 77,705 shares in the last quarter. Muzinich & Co. Inc. increased its position in shares of SLR Investment by 37.4% in the fourth quarter. Muzinich & Co. Inc. now owns 534,336 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $8,261,000 after acquiring an additional 145,323 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. increased its position in shares of SLR Investment by 8.0% in the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 449,290 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $6,946,000 after acquiring an additional 33,185 shares in the last quarter. 35.32% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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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