Horizon Technology Finance Co. (NASDAQ:HRZN) Receives Average Rating of “Reduce” from Brokerages

Shares of Horizon Technology Finance Co. (NASDAQ:HRZN) have been assigned an average rating of “Reduce” from the five analysts that are presently covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation and three have assigned a hold recommendation to the company. The average 1-year price objective among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $10.80.

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on HRZN shares. UBS Group decreased their price target on Horizon Technology Finance from $11.50 to $10.50 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, March 18th. Oppenheimer dropped their price objective on Horizon Technology Finance from $11.00 to $10.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, March 1st. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH reaffirmed a “neutral” rating on shares of Horizon Technology Finance in a research note on Wednesday, February 28th. Finally, B. Riley downgraded Horizon Technology Finance from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and set a $11.00 price target on the stock. in a research note on Monday, January 8th.

Horizon Technology Finance Stock Performance

NASDAQ:HRZN opened at $11.24 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $12.49 and a 200 day simple moving average of $12.39. The company has a market cap of $375.42 million, a PE ratio of -22.94 and a beta of 1.21. Horizon Technology Finance has a 52-week low of $10.75 and a 52-week high of $13.73.

Horizon Technology Finance (NASDAQ:HRZN) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 27th. The investment management company reported $0.45 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.48 by ($0.03). Horizon Technology Finance had a positive return on equity of 18.24% and a negative net margin of 15.14%. The firm had revenue of $28.18 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $29.21 million. On average, research analysts predict that Horizon Technology Finance will post 1.53 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Horizon Technology Finance Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 16th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 19th will be issued a $0.16 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 18th. This is a positive change from Horizon Technology Finance’s previous dividend of $0.11. This represents a yield of 16.48%. Horizon Technology Finance’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is -269.38%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Horizon Technology Finance news, President Gerald A. Michaud bought 3,650 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 8th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $11.77 per share, for a total transaction of $42,960.50. Following the completion of the acquisition, the president now owns 156,244 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,838,991.88. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 1.50% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Horizon Technology Finance

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Horizon Technology Finance during the 1st quarter valued at $28,000. Natixis Advisors L.P. lifted its stake in Horizon Technology Finance by 14.1% in the 1st quarter. Natixis Advisors L.P. now owns 47,863 shares of the investment management company’s stock worth $665,000 after purchasing an additional 5,931 shares in the last quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp lifted its stake in Horizon Technology Finance by 8.0% in the 1st quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 92,987 shares of the investment management company’s stock worth $1,293,000 after purchasing an additional 6,885 shares in the last quarter. Eqis Capital Management Inc. lifted its stake in Horizon Technology Finance by 1.7% in the 1st quarter. Eqis Capital Management Inc. now owns 192,095 shares of the investment management company’s stock worth $2,670,000 after purchasing an additional 3,203 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada raised its position in shares of Horizon Technology Finance by 366.2% during the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 28,967 shares of the investment management company’s stock valued at $402,000 after buying an additional 22,753 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 4.94% of the company’s stock.

About Horizon Technology Finance

Horizon Technology Finance Corporation is a business development company specializing in lending and and investing in development-stage investments. It focuses on making secured debt and venture lending investments to venture capital backed companies in the technology, life science, healthcare information and services, cleantech and sustainability industries.