Carlyle Secured Lending (NASDAQ:CGBD) Sets New 12-Month Low – Should You Sell?

Carlyle Secured Lending, Inc. (NASDAQ:CGBD) shares reached a new 52-week low during trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as low as $10.45 and last traded at $10.4980, with a volume of 342581 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $10.53.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have recently commented on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on shares of Carlyle Secured Lending from $13.00 to $12.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, May 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on 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 reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Carlyle Secured Lending in a report on Tuesday, May 12th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $12.50.

Carlyle Secured Lending Stock Down 0.9%

The company has a market cap of $725.30 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.68 and a beta of 0.62. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.24, a current ratio of 1.72 and a quick ratio of 1.72. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $11.01 and a 200 day moving average price of $11.54.

Carlyle Secured Lending (NASDAQ:CGBD) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, May 11th. The company reported $0.36 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.35 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $64.08 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $65.78 million. Carlyle Secured Lending had a return on equity of 8.99% and a net margin of 19.52%. Sell-side analysts predict that Carlyle Secured Lending, Inc. will post 1.36 EPS for the current year.

Carlyle Secured Lending Cuts Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 16th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 30th will be issued a dividend of $0.35 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, June 30th. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 13.4%. Carlyle Secured Lending’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 197.18%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Carlyle Secured Lending

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of CGBD. Royal Bank of Canada raised its position in shares of Carlyle Secured Lending by 1.9% in the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 275,612 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,460,000 after buying an additional 5,054 shares in the last quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. boosted its stake in Carlyle Secured Lending by 71.9% in the second quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 2,630 shares of the company’s stock valued at $36,000 after buying an additional 1,100 shares in the last quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP acquired a new stake in Carlyle Secured Lending in the second quarter valued at about $146,000. Invesco Ltd. grew its position in Carlyle Secured Lending by 18.5% in the second quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 779,586 shares of the company’s stock valued at $10,665,000 after acquiring an additional 121,686 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Jump Financial LLC bought a new position in Carlyle Secured Lending in the second quarter valued at about $179,000. 24.51% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.