Runway Growth Finance Corp. (NASDAQ:RWAY) Given Average Rating of “Hold” by Brokerages

Shares of Runway Growth Finance Corp. (NASDAQ:RWAY) have earned a consensus rating of “Hold” from the eight ratings firms that are presently covering the company, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, four have given a hold recommendation and two have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month price objective among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $8.20.

Several research firms have recently issued reports on RWAY. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Runway Growth Finance from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Saturday, May 16th. B. Riley Financial cut their target price on Runway Growth Finance from $12.00 to $10.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, March 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on Runway Growth Finance from $9.50 to $7.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, March 13th. Bank of America cut Runway Growth Finance from a “neutral” rating to an “underperform” rating and lowered their price target for the company from $9.00 to $5.50 in a research report on Monday, June 15th. Finally, Weiss Ratings lowered Runway Growth Finance from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 16th.

Runway Growth Finance Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ RWAY traded up $0.06 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $5.33. 561,928 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 610,057. The company has a market cap of $226.37 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -59.22 and a beta of 0.66. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $6.03 and a 200 day moving average price of $7.31. Runway Growth Finance has a 52 week low of $5.19 and a 52 week high of $11.40. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.01, a current ratio of 0.44 and a quick ratio of 0.44.

Runway Growth Finance (NASDAQ:RWAY) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The company reported $0.29 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.31 by ($0.02). Runway Growth Finance had a negative net margin of 2.00% and a positive return on equity of 10.87%. The company had revenue of $29.45 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $29.46 million. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Runway Growth Finance will post 1.22 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Runway Growth Finance Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 2nd. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 18th were given a $0.33 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 18th. This represents a $1.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 24.8%. Runway Growth Finance’s payout ratio is -1,466.67%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Runway Growth Finance

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Key Capital Management INC bought a new stake in Runway Growth Finance during the fourth quarter worth approximately $29,000. Kestra Advisory Services LLC acquired a new position in Runway Growth Finance in the fourth quarter worth approximately $42,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in shares of Runway Growth Finance in the second quarter valued at $51,000. Osaic Holdings Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Runway Growth Finance by 92.6% in the second quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 5,515 shares of the company’s stock valued at $59,000 after buying an additional 2,651 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Tower Research Capital LLC TRC lifted its position in shares of Runway Growth Finance by 74,437.5% during the 2nd quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 5,963 shares of the company’s stock valued at $64,000 after acquiring an additional 5,955 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 64.61% of the company’s stock.

Runway Growth Finance Company Profile

Runway Growth Finance, Inc is a publicly traded business development company that provides customized debt and equity financing solutions to high‐growth, venture‐backed companies. The firm specializes in structuring senior secured loans, unitranche facilities, second‐lien financings, convertible notes and equity co‐investments designed to extend the cash runway for late‐stage companies. Runway’s flexible capital offerings are aimed at supporting technology, life sciences and other innovation‐driven sectors as they pursue growth initiatives and prepare for liquidity events.

Originally launched in 2017 under the name Saratoga Investment Corp., the company rebranded as Runway Growth Finance in 2020 following the acquisition of an established middle‐market credit manager.