Oaktree Specialty Lending Co. (NASDAQ:OCSL) Sees Large Decrease in Short Interest

Oaktree Specialty Lending Co. (NASDAQ:OCSL - Get Free Report) was the target of a large decline in short interest during the month of March. As of March 31st, there was short interest totalling 1,040,000 shares, a decline of 28.3% from the March 15th total of 1,450,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 824,600 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 1.3 days. Approximately 1.3% of the shares of the stock are short sold.

Oaktree Specialty Lending Trading Up 1.3 %

NASDAQ:OCSL traded up $0.18 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $14.41. 196,462 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 745,354. Oaktree Specialty Lending has a twelve month low of $12.50 and a twelve month high of $19.95. The business has a 50-day moving average of $15.18 and a two-hundred day moving average of $15.60. The company has a market capitalization of $1.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.51 and a beta of 0.84. The company has a quick ratio of 0.30, a current ratio of 0.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63.

Oaktree Specialty Lending (NASDAQ:OCSL - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The credit services provider reported $0.54 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.54. The company had revenue of $86.65 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $91.93 million. Oaktree Specialty Lending had a return on equity of 12.07% and a net margin of 14.75%. Oaktree Specialty Lending's revenue was down 11.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.57 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that Oaktree Specialty Lending will post 2.06 EPS for the current year.

Oaktree Specialty Lending Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 17th were issued a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 17th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 11.10%. Oaktree Specialty Lending's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 238.81%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their target price on Oaktree Specialty Lending from $16.50 to $15.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and seven have assigned a hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $16.42.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Canton Hathaway LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Oaktree Specialty Lending in the 4th quarter valued at $44,000. Spire Wealth Management acquired a new stake in Oaktree Specialty Lending in the fourth quarter valued at $68,000. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Oaktree Specialty Lending during the 4th quarter worth about $93,000. SG Americas Securities LLC acquired a new position in shares of Oaktree Specialty Lending during the 4th quarter worth about $106,000. Finally, EMC Capital Management increased its holdings in shares of Oaktree Specialty Lending by 53.2% in the 4th quarter. EMC Capital Management now owns 8,714 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $133,000 after acquiring an additional 3,026 shares during the last quarter. 36.79% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Oaktree Specialty Lending Company Profile

Oaktree Specialty Lending Corporation is a business development company. The fund specializing in investments in middle market, bridge financing, first and second lien debt financing, unsecured and mezzanine loan, mezzanine debt, senior and junior secured debt, expansions, sponsor-led acquisitions, preferred equity, and management buyouts in small and mid-sized companies.