Sound Point Meridian Capital, Inc. (NYSE:SPMC) Sees Large Increase in Short Interest

Key Points

• Short interest surged 75.3% to 66,043 shares as of July 15, representing about 0.3% of outstanding shares and 2.6 days to cover based on average trading volume.
• SPMC shares traded at $10.28, near the lower end of their 12-month range, while the company’s latest quarterly results missed expectations with $0.34 in EPS versus $0.41 expected and revenue of $12.57 million versus $17.20 million projected.
• The company announced a $0.20 monthly dividend, implying a reported 23.4% annualized yield. Analysts’ consensus rating is “Hold,” with an average price target of $15.12.

Sound Point Meridian Capital, Inc. (NYSE:SPMC - Get Free Report) was the target of a large growth in short interest in July. As of July 15th, there was short interest totaling 66,043 shares, a growth of 75.3% from the June 30th total of 37,664 shares. Approximately 0.3% of the company's stock are short sold. Based on an average trading volume of 25,113 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 2.6 days.

Sound Point Meridian Capital Stock Performance

Sound Point Meridian Capital stock traded up $0.20 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $10.28. The company's stock had a trading volume of 9,435 shares, compared to its average volume of 33,181. Sound Point Meridian Capital has a 12 month low of $8.36 and a 12 month high of $18.60. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $10.53 and its 200 day simple moving average is $10.80. The company has a market capitalization of $210.64 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -1.67 and a beta of 1.20.

Sound Point Meridian Capital (NYSE:SPMC - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 28th. The company reported $0.34 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.41 by ($0.07). The firm had revenue of $12.57 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $17.20 million. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Sound Point Meridian Capital will post 1.22 EPS for the current year.

Sound Point Meridian Capital Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a monthly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 30th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 15th will be paid a $0.20 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 15th. This represents a c) annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 23.4%. Sound Point Meridian Capital's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently -39.09%.

Institutional Trading of Sound Point Meridian Capital

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Thomas J. Herzfeld Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Sound Point Meridian Capital in the 4th quarter valued at about $189,000. Citadel Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Sound Point Meridian Capital during the third quarter worth approximately $267,000. Virtus Investment Advisers LLC raised its stake in Sound Point Meridian Capital by 7.5% in the fourth quarter. Virtus Investment Advisers LLC now owns 29,620 shares of the company's stock valued at $407,000 after buying an additional 2,061 shares during the period. Marshall Wace LLP lifted its position in shares of Sound Point Meridian Capital by 35.4% in the second quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 77,152 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,379,000 after buying an additional 20,163 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Everest Management Corp. boosted its stake in shares of Sound Point Meridian Capital by 5.6% during the 4th quarter. Everest Management Corp. now owns 79,798 shares of the company's stock worth $1,097,000 after acquiring an additional 4,243 shares during the period.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have issued reports on SPMC. Alliance Global Partners reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Sound Point Meridian Capital in a report on Wednesday, May 27th. Zacks Research raised Sound Point Meridian Capital from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $15.12.

Sound Point Meridian Capital Company Profile

Sound Point Meridian Capital Inc is an externally managed, non-diversified closed-end management investment company. Its investment objective is to generate high current income, with a secondary objective to generate capital appreciation, by investing primarily in third-party collateralized loan obligation equity and mezzanine tranches. Sound Point Meridian Capital Inc is based in NEW YORK.

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