SLR Investment Corp. (NASDAQ:SLRC) Short Interest Up 23.8% in March

SLR Investment Corp. (NASDAQ:SLRC) saw a significant growth in short interest in the month of March. As of March 13th, there was short interest totaling 609,038 shares, a growth of 23.8% from the February 26th total of 491,824 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 330,242 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 1.8 days. Currently, 1.2% of the company’s shares are short sold.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Michael S. Gross purchased 25,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 13th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $13.91 per share, with a total value of $347,750.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the insider directly owned 4,014,701 shares in the company, valued at approximately $55,844,490.91. This represents a 0.63% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 8.80% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On SLR Investment

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of SLRC. Ensign Peak Advisors Inc bought a new position in shares of SLR Investment in the fourth quarter worth approximately $5,411,000. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its position in shares of SLR Investment by 1,413.2% during the second quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 354,701 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $5,725,000 after acquiring an additional 331,260 shares in the last quarter. Closed End Fund Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in shares of SLR Investment during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $4,033,000. Millennium Management LLC purchased a new position in SLR Investment in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $2,650,000. Finally, Muzinich & Co. Inc. raised its holdings in SLR Investment by 37.4% in the 4th quarter. Muzinich & Co. Inc. now owns 534,336 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $8,261,000 after acquiring an additional 145,323 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 35.32% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have weighed in on SLRC. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of SLR Investment in a report on Monday, December 29th. Raymond James Financial set a $16.00 price target on SLR Investment and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 25th. Compass Point raised SLR Investment from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $16.50 price target on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, March 10th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on SLR Investment from $13.00 to $12.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, March 3rd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on SLR Investment from $15.00 to $14.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, March 13th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have assigned a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $15.29.

SLR Investment Stock Up 1.0%

Shares of SLRC stock traded up $0.14 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $14.05. 317,880 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 308,495. The company has a quick ratio of 1.04, a current ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $14.74 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $15.14. SLR Investment has a 12-month low of $13.64 and a 12-month high of $17.19. The stock has a market cap of $766.57 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.26 and a beta of 0.69.

SLR Investment (NASDAQ:SLRC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 24th. The financial services provider reported $0.40 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.40. The company had revenue of $54.46 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $54.97 million. SLR Investment had a return on equity of 8.76% and a net margin of 42.34%. On average, analysts expect that SLR Investment will post 1.76 EPS for the current year.

SLR Investment Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 27th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 13th were paid a $0.41 dividend. This represents a $1.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 11.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 13th. SLR Investment’s dividend payout ratio is currently 96.47%.

About SLR Investment

SLR Investment Corp. (NASDAQ: SLRC) is a closed‐end, externally managed business development company that provides customized debt and equity financing solutions to middle‐market companies. The firm seeks to generate current income and capital appreciation by investing primarily in senior secured loans, second lien financings, mezzanine debt and equity co‐investments. Its flexible capital approach allows it to structure financing across the capital structure to address a range of sponsor‐backed transactions.

SLR Investment Corp.