Oaktree Specialty Lending (NASDAQ:OCSL) Coverage Initiated at B. Riley

B. Riley initiated coverage on shares of Oaktree Specialty Lending (NASDAQ:OCSL) in a research report released on Tuesday morning, Marketbeat.com reports. The firm issued a neutral rating and a $14.00 target price on the credit services provider’s stock.

Several other equities analysts have also recently commented on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on shares of Oaktree Specialty Lending from $15.00 to $14.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 28th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price target on shares of Oaktree Specialty Lending from $16.50 to $15.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. StockNews.com cut shares of Oaktree Specialty Lending from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Monday, May 5th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on shares of Oaktree Specialty Lending from $15.00 to $14.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and seven have given a hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Oaktree Specialty Lending currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $15.83.

Oaktree Specialty Lending Stock Performance

Shares of OCSL stock opened at $14.14 on Tuesday. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $14.52 and its 200-day moving average price is $15.33. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63, a quick ratio of 0.30 and a current ratio of 0.30. Oaktree Specialty Lending has a one year low of $12.50 and a one year high of $19.80. The firm has a market cap of $1.25 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.10 and a beta of 0.74.

Oaktree Specialty Lending (NASDAQ:OCSL) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 1st. The credit services provider reported $0.45 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.51 by ($0.06). Oaktree Specialty Lending had a return on equity of 12.07% and a net margin of 14.75%. The company had revenue of $70.52 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $84.67 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.56 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Oaktree Specialty Lending will post 2.06 EPS for the current year.

Oaktree Specialty Lending Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 16th will be given a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 11.32%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 16th. Oaktree Specialty Lending’s dividend payout ratio is presently 1,230.77%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Oaktree Specialty Lending

In other news, Director Craig A. Jacobson acquired 14,910 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 6th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $13.41 per share, with a total value of $199,943.10. Following the transaction, the director now owns 71,667 shares in the company, valued at approximately $961,054.47. This trade represents a 26.27% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.28% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Oaktree Specialty Lending

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of OCSL. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. purchased a new stake in shares of Oaktree Specialty Lending in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $18,109,000. Invesco Ltd. grew its position in shares of Oaktree Specialty Lending by 1,300.1% in the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 875,913 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $13,384,000 after buying an additional 813,352 shares during the last quarter. Private Management Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Oaktree Specialty Lending by 51.3% in the 4th quarter. Private Management Group Inc. now owns 2,129,202 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $32,534,000 after buying an additional 721,629 shares during the last quarter. Castlekeep Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Oaktree Specialty Lending in the 4th quarter valued at $9,959,000. Finally, Generali Asset Management SPA SGR purchased a new position in shares of Oaktree Specialty Lending in the 4th quarter valued at $8,225,000. 36.79% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Oaktree Specialty Lending

Oaktree Specialty Lending Corporation is a business development company. The fund specializing in investments in middle market, bridge financing, first and second lien debt financing, unsecured and mezzanine loan, mezzanine debt, senior and junior secured debt, expansions, sponsor-led acquisitions, preferred equity, and management buyouts in small and mid-sized companies.