SLR Investment (NASDAQ:SLRC) Upgraded by Wall Street Zen to “Hold” Rating

Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of SLR Investment (NASDAQ:SLRC) from a sell rating to a hold rating in a research report sent to investors on Saturday morning.

Several other research analysts have also recently commented on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company restated an “underweight” rating and set a $13.00 target price (up previously from $12.00) on shares of SLR Investment in a report on Tuesday, August 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on shares of SLR Investment from $16.00 to $15.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, October 1st. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of SLR Investment in a research note on Tuesday, October 14th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $16.11.

SLR Investment Stock Up 0.9%

Shares of SLR Investment stock traded up $0.14 during trading on Friday, reaching $15.29. The stock had a trading volume of 215,344 shares, compared to its average volume of 203,811. The company has a current ratio of 1.08, a quick ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18. The company has a market capitalization of $834.22 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.44 and a beta of 0.73. SLR Investment has a 52 week low of $13.64 and a 52 week high of $17.94. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $15.40 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $15.97.

SLR Investment (NASDAQ:SLRC) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, November 4th. The financial services provider reported $0.40 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.41 by ($0.01). SLR Investment had a net margin of 39.93% and a return on equity of 9.26%. The firm had revenue of $56.99 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $56.33 million. Sell-side analysts predict that SLR Investment will post 1.76 EPS for the current fiscal year.

SLR Investment Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 26th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 12th will be given a $0.41 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 12th. This represents a $1.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 10.7%. SLR Investment’s dividend payout ratio is presently 99.39%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Andrea Colvin Roberts purchased 7,190 shares of SLR Investment stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 9th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $16.73 per share, for a total transaction of $120,288.70. Following the purchase, the director directly owned 7,190 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $120,288.70. This trade represents a ∞ increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 8.80% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of SLR Investment

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. N.E.W. Advisory Services LLC bought a new position in shares of SLR Investment during the first quarter worth approximately $31,000. CWM LLC increased its stake in SLR Investment by 215.6% in the third quarter. CWM LLC now owns 2,367 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 1,617 shares during the last quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue bought a new position in SLR Investment in the third quarter valued at approximately $38,000. Global Retirement Partners LLC acquired a new position in SLR Investment during the third quarter valued at approximately $65,000. Finally, Allworth Financial LP bought a new stake in SLR Investment during the second quarter worth $121,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 35.32% of the company’s stock.

SLR Investment Company Profile

SLR Investment Corp. is a business development company specializing in secured debt (first lien unitranche and second lien), subordinated (unsecured) debt, minority equity, leveraged buyouts, acquisitions, recapitalizations, general refinancing, growth capital and strategic income-oriented control equity investments in leveraged middle market companies.