Stellus Capital Investment Corporation (NYSE:SCM) Declares $0.13 -- Dividend

Stellus Capital Investment Corporation (NYSE:SCM - Get Free Report) declared a -- dividend on Thursday, July 3rd, Wall Street Journal reports. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 30th will be given a dividend of 0.1333 per share by the investment management company on Wednesday, October 15th. This represents a yield of 11.1%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 30th.

Stellus Capital Investment has a payout ratio of 127.0% meaning the company cannot currently cover its dividend with earnings alone and is relying on its balance sheet to cover its dividend payments. Equities research analysts expect Stellus Capital Investment to earn $1.45 per share next year, which means the company may not be able to cover its $1.60 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 110.3%.

Stellus Capital Investment Stock Performance

Shares of SCM traded up $0.21 on Friday, reaching $14.44. 91,371 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 156,414. The firm has a market cap of $410.38 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.03 and a beta of 0.88. Stellus Capital Investment has a 12 month low of $11.19 and a 12 month high of $15.56. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $13.47 and its 200-day moving average price is $13.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09, a current ratio of 0.08 and a quick ratio of 0.08.

Stellus Capital Investment (NYSE:SCM - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, May 12th. The investment management company reported $0.37 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts' consensus estimates of $0.37. Stellus Capital Investment had a net margin of 36.35% and a return on equity of 11.93%. The company had revenue of $24.95 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $26.76 million. Equities analysts forecast that Stellus Capital Investment will post 1.74 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

SCM has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Stellus Capital Investment from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, June 27th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their target price on Stellus Capital Investment from $13.50 to $13.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Stellus Capital Investment

An institutional investor recently raised its position in Stellus Capital Investment stock. Royal Bank of Canada raised its position in Stellus Capital Investment Corporation (NYSE:SCM - Free Report) by 15.8% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 27,882 shares of the investment management company's stock after buying an additional 3,808 shares during the period. Royal Bank of Canada owned 0.10% of Stellus Capital Investment worth $390,000 as of its most recent SEC filing. Institutional investors own 13.22% of the company's stock.

About Stellus Capital Investment

Stellus Capital Investment Corporation is a business development company specializing in investments in private middle-market companies. It invests through first lien, second lien, unitranche, and mezzanine debt financing, often with a corresponding equity investment. The fund prefers to invest in US and Canada.