Saratoga Investment Corp. (NYSE:SAR) Short Interest Down 14.6% in February

Saratoga Investment Corp. (NYSE:SAR - Get Free Report) was the target of a large decline in short interest during the month of February. As of February 15th, there was short interest totalling 129,000 shares, a decline of 14.6% from the January 31st total of 151,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 114,600 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 1.1 days.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on SAR shares. Compass Point cut their price objective on Saratoga Investment from $26.25 to $25.25 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, January 13th. StockNews.com raised Saratoga Investment from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Sunday, January 26th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Saratoga Investment has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $25.08.

Saratoga Investment Stock Performance

Saratoga Investment stock traded up $0.60 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $24.17. The stock had a trading volume of 99,376 shares, compared to its average volume of 127,749. The company has a 50-day moving average of $24.96 and a two-hundred day moving average of $24.33. The company has a quick ratio of 0.33, a current ratio of 0.33 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14. The company has a market cap of $346.71 million, a PE ratio of 9.75 and a beta of 1.31. Saratoga Investment has a fifty-two week low of $21.56 and a fifty-two week high of $26.49.

Remove Ads

Saratoga Investment (NYSE:SAR - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 8th. The financial services provider reported $0.90 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.82 by $0.08. Saratoga Investment had a return on equity of 15.53% and a net margin of 22.01%. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Saratoga Investment will post 3.93 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Saratoga Investment Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a monthly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 24th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, June 5th will be issued a $0.25 dividend. This is a boost from Saratoga Investment's previous monthly dividend of $0.25. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, June 5th. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 12.41%. Saratoga Investment's dividend payout ratio is 119.35%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Saratoga Investment

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Promus Capital LLC acquired a new position in Saratoga Investment in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $30,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. acquired a new position in shares of Saratoga Investment in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $116,000. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC acquired a new position in shares of Saratoga Investment in the 4th quarter worth approximately $212,000. PVG Asset Management Corp acquired a new position in shares of Saratoga Investment in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $236,000. Finally, Jane Street Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Saratoga Investment in the 4th quarter worth approximately $252,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.