Saratoga Investment Corp (NYSE:SAR) Given Average Recommendation of “Hold” by Brokerages

Shares of Saratoga Investment Corp (NYSE:SAR) have been given a consensus recommendation of “Hold” by the six ratings firms that are covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation. The average 12-month target price among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $21.50.

SAR has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Weiss Ratings lowered Saratoga Investment from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 8th. B. Riley Financial cut their price objective on shares of Saratoga Investment from $23.00 to $22.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, July 9th. Zacks Research raised shares of Saratoga Investment from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, September 7th. Finally, Oppenheimer cut their price target on shares of Saratoga Investment from $22.00 to $21.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, July 9th.

Saratoga Investment Stock Performance

Shares of SAR opened at $17.86 on Friday. Saratoga Investment has a 52-week low of $17.08 and a 52-week high of $25.15. The stock has a market capitalization of $287.19 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.86 and a beta of 0.54. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18, a quick ratio of 0.09 and a current ratio of 0.09. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $18.69 and its 200 day simple moving average is $21.02.

Saratoga Investment (NYSE:SAR) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 7th. The financial services provider reported $0.47 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.54 by ($0.07). The firm had revenue of $30.78 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $31.38 million. Saratoga Investment had a net margin of 12.70% and a return on equity of 8.76%. Research analysts forecast that Saratoga Investment will post 1.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Saratoga Investment Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a monthly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 22nd. Investors of record on Thursday, December 3rd will be given a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a c) annualized dividend and a yield of 16.8%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, December 3rd. Saratoga Investment’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 300.00%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Saratoga Investment

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of SAR. Lido Advisors LLC lifted its position in Saratoga Investment by 0.6% in the fourth quarter. Lido Advisors LLC now owns 199,138 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $4,855,000 after purchasing an additional 1,265 shares during the last quarter. Closed End Fund Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Saratoga Investment in the fourth quarter worth $3,680,000. Private Advisor Group LLC raised its holdings in Saratoga Investment by 1.1% during the 1st quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 165,139 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $3,612,000 after buying an additional 1,780 shares during the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in Saratoga Investment by 33.3% during the 1st quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 82,407 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,762,000 after buying an additional 20,598 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Focus Financial Network Inc. boosted its position in Saratoga Investment by 19.1% during the 2nd quarter. Focus Financial Network Inc. now owns 25,218 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $563,000 after buying an additional 4,042 shares during the period. 19.09% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Saratoga Investment Company Profile

Saratoga Investment Corporation (NYSE:SAR) is a business development company that provides financing and equity capital to lower-middle-market companies in the United States. The company primarily seeks to support established businesses that require capital for growth, acquisitions, recapitalizations, ownership transitions and other strategic initiatives.

Its investment activities generally include senior secured loans, unitranche and mezzanine debt, subordinated debt, and minority or other equity investments.