Golub Capital BDC, Inc. (NASDAQ:GBDC) Receives Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

Golub Capital BDC, Inc. (NASDAQ:GBDC) has earned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the seven brokerages that are covering the firm, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, four have given a buy recommendation and one has assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month target price among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $13.90.

GBDC has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Golub Capital BDC in a research note on Monday, September 21st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their target price on Golub Capital BDC from $14.00 to $13.50 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, August 5th. Zacks Research upgraded Golub Capital BDC from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, July 6th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised Golub Capital BDC from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, August 8th.

Golub Capital BDC Stock Performance

GBDC stock opened at $12.65 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $3.28 billion, a PE ratio of 19.46 and a beta of 0.41. The company has a current ratio of 1.33, a quick ratio of 1.33 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $12.89 and a 200-day moving average price of $12.90. Golub Capital BDC has a 1-year low of $11.77 and a 1-year high of $14.40.

Golub Capital BDC (NASDAQ:GBDC) last issued its earnings results on Monday, August 3rd. The investment management company reported $0.34 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.33 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $98.53 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $189.91 million. Golub Capital BDC had a return on equity of 9.91% and a net margin of 21.45%.During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.39 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Golub Capital BDC will post 1.36 earnings per share for the current year.

Golub Capital BDC Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 29th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 14th were issued a dividend of $0.33 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, September 14th. This represents a $1.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 10.4%. Golub Capital BDC’s dividend payout ratio is presently 203.08%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Golub Capital BDC news, Director Lawrence Golub sold 1,676,387 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, August 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $13.06, for a total value of $21,893,614.22. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 1.40% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Golub Capital BDC

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Allworth Financial LP bought a new position in shares of Golub Capital BDC in the second quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Burk Holdings LLC purchased a new position in Golub Capital BDC during the 2nd quarter worth $30,000. Main Street Group LTD bought a new stake in shares of Golub Capital BDC in the 1st quarter worth $47,000. Fifth Third Bancorp purchased a new stake in shares of Golub Capital BDC in the first quarter valued at about $68,000. Finally, Trust Co. of Vermont bought a new stake in Golub Capital BDC in the 2nd quarter worth about $77,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 42.38% of the company’s stock.

About Golub Capital BDC

Golub Capital BDC, Inc is a business development company that provides financing to middle-market companies. The company primarily invests in privately owned businesses through senior secured loans, unitranche loans, second-lien loans, subordinated debt and, to a lesser extent, equity investments. Its objective is to generate current income and long-term capital appreciation by supporting companies across a range of industries.

Golub Capital BDC generally works with companies that are backed by private equity firms and provides customized financing for acquisitions, recapitalizations, refinancings, growth initiatives and other corporate purposes.