Saratoga Investment Corp (NYSE:SAR) Given Average Rating of “Hold” by Analysts

Shares of Saratoga Investment Corp (NYSE:SAR) have been given a consensus rating of “Hold” by the five brokerages that are covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation. The average 12 month price objective among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $23.00.

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Wall Street Zen cut Saratoga Investment from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Saturday, May 9th. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Saratoga Investment in a research note on Friday, March 27th.

Saratoga Investment Trading Up 1.3%

Shares of Saratoga Investment stock opened at $22.20 on Wednesday. Saratoga Investment has a 52-week low of $20.78 and a 52-week high of $25.64. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $22.46 and its 200 day simple moving average is $22.80. The stock has a market capitalization of $361.15 million, a P/E ratio of 9.53 and a beta of 0.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18, a quick ratio of 0.04 and a current ratio of 0.04.

Saratoga Investment (NYSE:SAR) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 5th. The financial services provider reported $0.53 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.53. Saratoga Investment had a return on equity of 9.29% and a net margin of 29.12%.The business had revenue of $6.85 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $30.85 million. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Saratoga Investment will post 2.15 EPS for the current year.

Saratoga Investment Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a monthly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 23rd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, September 3rd will be paid a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, September 3rd. This represents a c) annualized dividend and a yield of 13.5%. Saratoga Investment’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 128.76%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in SAR. Closed End Fund Advisors Inc. bought a new position in Saratoga Investment in the 4th quarter worth about $3,680,000. Bank of America Corp DE boosted its stake in Saratoga Investment by 2,243.4% in the 1st quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 25,027 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $547,000 after purchasing an additional 23,959 shares during the period. International Assets Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in Saratoga Investment by 33.3% in the 1st quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 82,407 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,762,000 after purchasing an additional 20,598 shares during the period. Greenwood Gearhart LLC bought a new stake in shares of Saratoga Investment during the 1st quarter valued at about $389,000. Finally, Brevan Howard Capital Management LP bought a new stake in shares of Saratoga Investment during the 3rd quarter valued at about $431,000. Institutional investors own 19.09% of the company’s stock.

Saratoga Investment Company Profile

Saratoga Investment Corp. is a closed-end, externally managed investment company that seeks to generate current income and total return through a diversified portfolio of private U.S. companies. Trading on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker SAR, the firm primarily targets middle-market businesses across a broad range of industries, including industrials, healthcare, consumer products, financial services and technology. Its investment approach combines debt and equity instruments, providing flexible capital solutions such as first-lien and second-lien secured loans, mezzanine debt, preferred equity and common equity positions.

As an actively managed vehicle, Saratoga Investment works closely with portfolio companies’ management teams to support growth initiatives, operational improvements, and strategic transactions.