Carlyle Secured Lending, Inc. (NASDAQ:CGBD) Short Interest Up 21.4% in March

Carlyle Secured Lending, Inc. (NASDAQ:CGBD) saw a significant growth in short interest in March. As of March 31st, there was short interest totaling 3,488,734 shares, a growth of 21.4% from the March 15th total of 2,874,131 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 786,565 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 4.4 days. Currently, 5.0% of the shares of the stock are sold short.

Carlyle Secured Lending Trading Down 1.7%

CGBD stock opened at $11.57 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $817.73 million, a PE ratio of 11.34 and a beta of 0.65. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.31, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 0.85. Carlyle Secured Lending has a one year low of $10.61 and a one year high of $15.15. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $11.30 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $12.07.

Carlyle Secured Lending (NASDAQ:CGBD) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 24th. The company reported $0.33 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.38 by ($0.05). The business had revenue of $66.91 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $67.26 million. Carlyle Secured Lending had a net margin of 27.38% and a return on equity of 8.56%. As a group, analysts predict that Carlyle Secured Lending will post 1.97 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Carlyle Secured Lending Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 16th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 31st were given a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 13.8%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, March 31st. Carlyle Secured Lending’s dividend payout ratio is presently 156.86%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have commented on CGBD shares. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on shares of Carlyle Secured Lending from $14.00 to $13.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 27th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Carlyle Secured Lending from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, January 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on shares of Carlyle Secured Lending from $12.00 to $10.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, March 13th. Finally, B. Riley Financial raised Carlyle Secured Lending from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $13.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 25th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $13.20.

Insider Buying and Selling at Carlyle Secured Lending

In related news, Director John G. Nestor sold 4,401 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $11.29, for a total value of $49,687.29. Following the sale, the director directly owned 5,516 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $62,275.64. This trade represents a 44.38% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.61% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Transcend Capital Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Carlyle Secured Lending by 2.8% in the 4th quarter. Transcend Capital Advisors LLC now owns 29,451 shares of the company’s stock valued at $368,000 after acquiring an additional 805 shares during the last quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp grew its position in Carlyle Secured Lending by 3.2% during the 4th quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 27,466 shares of the company’s stock worth $348,000 after acquiring an additional 857 shares during the last quarter. Advisory Research Inc. increased its stake in Carlyle Secured Lending by 9.2% in the 3rd quarter. Advisory Research Inc. now owns 11,340 shares of the company’s stock worth $142,000 after purchasing an additional 953 shares during the period. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. increased its stake in Carlyle Secured Lending by 71.9% in the 2nd quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 2,630 shares of the company’s stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 1,100 shares during the period. Finally, Sunbelt Securities Inc. lifted its position in Carlyle Secured Lending by 3.3% in the fourth quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. now owns 34,182 shares of the company’s stock valued at $427,000 after purchasing an additional 1,100 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 24.51% of the company’s stock.

About Carlyle Secured Lending

Carlyle Secured Lending, Inc (NASDAQ: CGBD) is a closed-end, non-diversified business development company that provides customized debt financing solutions to middle-market companies. Chartered under the Investment Company Act of 1940, the company invests primarily in floating-rate senior secured loans, including first-lien, unitranche and one-stop structures. Its objective is to generate current income and capital appreciation through disciplined credit selection and active portfolio management.

The firm focuses on U.S.