SLR Investment (NASDAQ:SLRC) Sets New 12-Month Low – Here’s Why

SLR Investment Corp. (NASDAQ:SLRC) reached a new 52-week low on Thursday . The company traded as low as $12.96 and last traded at $13.00, with a volume of 443478 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $13.12.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on SLRC. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of SLR Investment from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Saturday, May 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on shares of SLR Investment from $14.00 to $13.50 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. Raymond James Financial set a $16.00 price target on shares of SLR Investment and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 25th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on shares of SLR Investment from $12.00 to $11.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. Finally, Zacks Research downgraded shares of SLR Investment from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Friday, May 8th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and a consensus target price of $14.40.

SLR Investment Trading Down 0.9%

The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $14.70 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $15.10. The stock has a market cap of $709.28 million, a P/E ratio of 7.93 and a beta of 0.71. The company has a quick ratio of 1.04, a current ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15.

SLR Investment (NASDAQ:SLRC) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The financial services provider reported $0.33 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.40 by ($0.07). The company had revenue of $47.14 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $54.01 million. SLR Investment had a return on equity of 8.33% and a net margin of 41.81%. As a group, analysts expect that SLR Investment Corp. will post 1.33 EPS for the current year.

SLR Investment Cuts Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 26th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 12th will be paid a dividend of $0.31 per share. This represents a $1.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 9.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 12th. SLR Investment’s payout ratio is presently 100.00%.

Insider Buying and Selling at SLR Investment

In related news, insider Michael S. Gross bought 10,452 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 16th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $13.90 per share, with a total value of $145,282.80. Following the completion of the purchase, the insider owned 4,025,153 shares in the company, valued at $55,949,626.70. This represents a 0.26% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. Insiders own 8.80% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On SLR Investment

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of SLRC. Ensign Peak Advisors Inc acquired a new position in shares of SLR Investment during the fourth quarter worth $5,411,000. Closed End Fund Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in shares of SLR Investment during the fourth quarter worth $4,033,000. Millennium Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of SLR Investment during the third quarter worth $2,650,000. Muzinich & Co. Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of SLR Investment by 37.4% during the fourth quarter. Muzinich & Co. Inc. now owns 534,336 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $8,261,000 after purchasing an additional 145,323 shares during the period. Finally, Triad Investment Management acquired a new position in shares of SLR Investment during the fourth quarter worth $1,930,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 35.32% of the company’s stock.

SLR Investment Company Profile

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.