WhiteHorse Finance (NASDAQ:WHF) CEO Buys $96,880.00 in Stock

WhiteHorse Finance, Inc. (NASDAQ:WHF) CEO Stuart Aronson acquired 14,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 12th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $6.92 per share, with a total value of $96,880.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 50,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $346,000. The trade was a 38.89% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website.

WhiteHorse Finance Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:WHF traded up $0.29 on Friday, reaching $7.04. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 142,990 shares, compared to its average volume of 102,248. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $7.36 and a 200 day simple moving average of $8.38. WhiteHorse Finance, Inc. has a 52-week low of $6.39 and a 52-week high of $11.31. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.32, a quick ratio of 1.34 and a current ratio of 1.34. The company has a market cap of $163.63 million, a P/E ratio of 46.94 and a beta of 0.79.

WhiteHorse Finance (NASDAQ:WHF) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, November 10th. The investment management company reported $0.26 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.29 by ($0.03). The business had revenue of $17.69 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $18.43 million. WhiteHorse Finance had a net margin of 4.36% and a return on equity of 10.72%. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that WhiteHorse Finance, Inc. will post 1.66 EPS for the current fiscal year.

WhiteHorse Finance Cuts Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 5th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 22nd will be given a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 22nd. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 14.2%. WhiteHorse Finance’s payout ratio is currently 232.56%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently weighed in on WHF. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH upgraded WhiteHorse Finance to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, August 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on shares of WhiteHorse Finance from $8.00 to $6.50 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, October 1st. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (d+)” rating on shares of WhiteHorse Finance in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Zacks Research raised shares of WhiteHorse Finance from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, October 13th. Finally, B. Riley dropped their target price on WhiteHorse Finance from $9.50 to $9.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, August 13th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Reduce” and a consensus target price of $7.75.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On WhiteHorse Finance

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Northstar Advisory Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of WhiteHorse Finance during the second quarter worth approximately $87,000. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S boosted its holdings in shares of WhiteHorse Finance by 13.4% in the first quarter. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S now owns 48,487 shares of the investment management company’s stock valued at $468,000 after purchasing an additional 5,715 shares during the period. Ethos Financial Group LLC bought a new position in WhiteHorse Finance in the first quarter worth approximately $1,931,000. Bank of America Corp DE grew its stake in WhiteHorse Finance by 92.0% in the second quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 185,004 shares of the investment management company’s stock worth $1,613,000 after purchasing an additional 88,659 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Two Sigma Investments LP increased its holdings in WhiteHorse Finance by 27.5% during the 3rd quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP now owns 231,140 shares of the investment management company’s stock worth $1,599,000 after purchasing an additional 49,893 shares during the period. 13.20% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About WhiteHorse Finance

WhiteHorse Finance, Inc is business development company, non-diversified, closed end management company specializing in originating senior secured loans, lower middle market, growth capital industries. It invests in broadline retail, office services and supplies, building products, health care services, health care supplies, research and consulting services, application software, home furnishings, specialized consumer services, data processing and outsourced services, leisure facilities, cable, and satellite.