LADENBURG THALM/SH SH Lowers Stellus Capital Investment (NYSE:SCM) Price Target to $11.00

Stellus Capital Investment (NYSE:SCM) had its price objective cut by LADENBURG THALM/SH SH from $12.00 to $11.00 in a report issued on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a “buy” rating on the investment management company’s stock. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH’s price objective would indicate a potential upside of 19.70% from the company’s previous close.

SCM has been the subject of several other research reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their target price on shares of Stellus Capital Investment from $13.00 to $9.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, March 16th. Zacks Research cut shares of Stellus Capital Investment from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Thursday, April 16th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $10.00.

Stellus Capital Investment Stock Performance

Shares of SCM stock traded down $0.20 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $9.19. The company had a trading volume of 221,937 shares, compared to its average volume of 218,825. The stock has a market cap of $266.05 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.21 and a beta of 0.66. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13, a current ratio of 0.14 and a quick ratio of 0.14. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $9.49 and its 200 day simple moving average is $11.26. Stellus Capital Investment has a 52-week low of $8.43 and a 52-week high of $15.39.

Stellus Capital Investment (NYSE:SCM) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, May 11th. The investment management company reported $0.27 EPS for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.27. Stellus Capital Investment had a return on equity of 9.61% and a net margin of 23.59%.The business had revenue of $23,292.93 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $24.81 million. Research analysts anticipate that Stellus Capital Investment will post 1.09 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO W. Todd Huskinson acquired 5,700 shares of Stellus Capital Investment stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 13th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $8.79 per share, for a total transaction of $50,103.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief financial officer directly owned 54,297 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $477,270.63. This trade represents a 11.73% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Robert T. Ladd acquired 35,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 13th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $8.70 per share, for a total transaction of $304,500.00. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer owned 667,935 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,811,034.50. This represents a 5.53% increase in their position. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. Insiders purchased 87,890 shares of company stock worth $766,551 in the last 90 days. 3.99% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Stellus Capital Investment

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Gallagher Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Stellus Capital Investment during the first quarter worth $313,000. PFG Investments LLC increased its position in shares of Stellus Capital Investment by 7.2% in the first quarter. PFG Investments LLC now owns 74,661 shares of the investment management company’s stock valued at $688,000 after buying an additional 5,016 shares in the last quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC purchased a new position in shares of Stellus Capital Investment in the first quarter valued at $399,000. Corient Private Wealth LLC raised its stake in shares of Stellus Capital Investment by 2.6% during the 4th quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 281,166 shares of the investment management company’s stock worth $3,565,000 after buying an additional 7,066 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sunbelt Securities Inc. raised its stake in shares of Stellus Capital Investment by 5.8% during the 4th quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. now owns 154,573 shares of the investment management company’s stock worth $1,960,000 after buying an additional 8,440 shares during the last quarter. 13.22% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Stellus Capital Investment

Stellus Capital Investment Corporation (NYSE: SCM) is a closed-end, externally managed business development company that provides debt and equity financing to middle market companies in the United States. As an investment vehicle specializing in private credit, Stellus focuses on originating and structuring senior secured loans, unitranche facilities, mezzanine debt, and equity co-investments tailored to the unique needs of growing businesses. Its flexible capital solutions are designed to support acquisitions, recapitalizations, growth initiatives, and balance sheet refinancings.

Operating under an evergreen structure, Stellus Capital Investment partners with a diverse group of portfolio companies across industries such as manufacturing, healthcare, business services, and specialty finance.