Saratoga Investment Corp. (NYSE:SAR) Sees Large Decrease in Short Interest

Saratoga Investment Corp. (NYSE:SAR - Get Free Report) saw a large drop in short interest in the month of December. As of December 15th, there was short interest totalling 138,900 shares, a drop of 21.7% from the November 30th total of 177,400 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 88,800 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 1.6 days.

Saratoga Investment Price Performance

Shares of NYSE SAR traded up $0.02 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $23.77. The company's stock had a trading volume of 57,685 shares, compared to its average volume of 79,774. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $24.41 and a two-hundred day moving average of $23.61. The firm has a market capitalization of $328.05 million, a PE ratio of 15.54 and a beta of 1.33. Saratoga Investment has a 52 week low of $21.56 and a 52 week high of $26.49. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a current ratio of 0.22 and a quick ratio of 0.22.

Saratoga Investment (NYSE:SAR - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 8th. The financial services provider reported $1.33 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.94 by $0.39. Saratoga Investment had a net margin of 13.64% and a return on equity of 15.88%. The business had revenue of $43.00 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $36.84 million. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Saratoga Investment will post 3.93 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Saratoga Investment Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a None dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 19th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, December 4th were issued a $1.09 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, December 4th. This represents a yield of 11.9%. Saratoga Investment's dividend payout ratio is currently 193.46%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have issued reports on the company. Compass Point boosted their price target on Saratoga Investment from $24.75 to $26.25 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, October 11th. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH downgraded Saratoga Investment from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. B. Riley restated a "neutral" rating and set a $25.00 target price on shares of Saratoga Investment in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Finally, Oppenheimer lifted their price target on shares of Saratoga Investment from $23.00 to $25.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Saratoga Investment currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $25.42.

Institutional Trading of Saratoga Investment

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. International Assets Investment Management LLC raised its stake in Saratoga Investment by 2,268.4% during the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 112,238 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,603,000 after purchasing an additional 107,499 shares in the last quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Saratoga Investment during the 3rd quarter valued at about $1,450,000. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Saratoga Investment by 8.2% in the 2nd quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 22,224 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $505,000 after acquiring an additional 1,677 shares during the last quarter. B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. grew its position in Saratoga Investment by 8.4% in the second quarter. B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 9,885 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $225,000 after acquiring an additional 770 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Private Advisor Group LLC increased its stake in Saratoga Investment by 2.7% during the second quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 129,550 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $2,941,000 after acquiring an additional 3,417 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 19.09% of the company's stock.

About Saratoga Investment

Saratoga Investment Corp. is a business development company specializing in leveraged and management buyouts, acquisition financings, growth financings, recapitalization, debt refinancing, and transitional financing transactions at the lower end of middle market companies. It structures its investments as debt and equity by investing through first and second lien loans, mezzanine debt, co-investments, select high yield bonds, senior secured bonds, unsecured bonds, and preferred and common equity.