WhiteHorse Finance, Inc. (NASDAQ:WHF) Short Interest Update

Key Points

• Short interest fell 15.5% in April to 343,434 shares (about 1.6% of the stock) with a days-to-cover ratio of 2.8, signaling reduced bearish positioning.
• Insiders increased exposure recently: Director John Bolduc bought 8,392 shares at $7.12 and CEO Stuart Aronson bought 8,000 shares at $6.95, contributing to 47,448 insider-purchased shares over the past three months and insiders now owning 2.5% of the company.
• Analysts have an average "Reduce" rating with a $7.75 price target and Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a sell (d+), while the company pays a 13.2% dividend yield161.29% payout ratio, suggesting yield risk.

WhiteHorse Finance, Inc. (NASDAQ:WHF - Get Free Report) was the target of a significant drop in short interest during the month of April. As of April 15th, there was short interest totaling 343,434 shares, a drop of 15.5% from the March 31st total of 406,377 shares. Approximately 1.6% of the shares of the stock are sold short. Based on an average trading volume of 123,230 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 2.8 days.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "sell (d+)" rating on shares of WhiteHorse Finance in a research note on Monday, April 20th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Reduce" and an average price target of $7.75.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director John Bolduc bought 8,392 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 5th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $7.12 per share, with a total value of $59,751.04. Following the completion of the purchase, the director owned 267,894 shares in the company, valued at $1,907,405.28. This represents a 3.23% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Stuart D. Aronson bought 8,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 23rd. The shares were bought at an average cost of $6.95 per share, for a total transaction of $55,600.00. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer owned 80,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $556,000. The trade was a 11.11% increase in their position. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders purchased 47,448 shares of company stock worth $337,673 over the last three months. 2.50% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On WhiteHorse Finance

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. HRT Financial LP grew its position in shares of WhiteHorse Finance by 16.5% during the 4th quarter. HRT Financial LP now owns 19,922 shares of the investment management company's stock valued at $138,000 after acquiring an additional 2,815 shares during the period. Advisory Services Network LLC bought a new position in shares of WhiteHorse Finance during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Osaic Holdings Inc. grew its position in shares of WhiteHorse Finance by 43.7% during the 4th quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 18,634 shares of the investment management company's stock valued at $130,000 after acquiring an additional 5,665 shares during the period. Kestra Advisory Services LLC bought a new position in shares of WhiteHorse Finance during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $44,000. Finally, CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co grew its position in shares of WhiteHorse Finance by 35.9% during the 3rd quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co now owns 24,457 shares of the investment management company's stock valued at $169,000 after acquiring an additional 6,460 shares during the period. 13.20% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

WhiteHorse Finance Price Performance

WHF stock opened at $7.60 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $168.95 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.26 and a beta of 0.41. The company has a quick ratio of 1.25, a current ratio of 1.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25. WhiteHorse Finance has a 12-month low of $6.07 and a 12-month high of $9.68. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $7.24 and its 200 day simple moving average is $7.10.

WhiteHorse Finance (NASDAQ:WHF - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Monday, March 2nd. The investment management company reported $0.29 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.27 by $0.02. WhiteHorse Finance had a net margin of 19.73% and a return on equity of 9.66%. The business had revenue of $17.34 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.91 million. On average, analysts expect that WhiteHorse Finance will post 1.08 earnings per share for the current year.

WhiteHorse Finance Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 6th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 12th were given a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 12th. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 13.2%. WhiteHorse Finance's payout ratio is presently 161.29%.

About WhiteHorse Finance

WhiteHorse Finance Corporation NASDAQ: WHF is a closed-end management investment company organized as a business development company under the Investment Company Act of 1940. The firm's primary objective is to generate current income and, to a lesser extent, capital appreciation by making debt and equity investments in privately held middle-market companies. WhiteHorse Finance seeks to partner with established businesses across a range of industries, providing flexible financing solutions designed to support growth initiatives, acquisitions and recapitalizations.

The company's investment portfolio predominantly comprises senior secured loans, second-lien debt, subordinated debt and select equity interests.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.