Stellus Capital Investment Co. (SCM) To Go Ex-Dividend on April 29th

Stellus Capital Investment Co. (NYSE:SCM) declared a monthly dividend on Wednesday, April 3rd, Zacks reports. Investors of record on Tuesday, April 30th will be given a dividend of 0.133 per share by the investment management company on Wednesday, May 15th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 11.30%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 29th.

Stellus Capital Investment has raised its dividend by an average of 13.6% annually over the last three years and has raised its dividend annually for the last 2 consecutive years. Stellus Capital Investment has a dividend payout ratio of 95.2% meaning its dividend is currently covered by earnings, but may not be in the future if the company’s earnings decline. Equities analysts expect Stellus Capital Investment to earn $1.69 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $1.60 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 94.7%.

Stellus Capital Investment Stock Performance

NYSE:SCM opened at $14.13 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $340.96 million, a P/E ratio of 18.12 and a beta of 1.17. The company has a current ratio of 0.20, a quick ratio of 0.20 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.31. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $13.22 and its 200-day moving average is $13.03. Stellus Capital Investment has a 1-year low of $12.19 and a 1-year high of $15.40.

Stellus Capital Investment (NYSE:SCM) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, March 5th. The investment management company reported $0.45 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.46 by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $28.02 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $27.20 million. Stellus Capital Investment had a return on equity of 14.01% and a net margin of 16.56%. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.44 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that Stellus Capital Investment will post 1.77 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

SCM has been the topic of a number of research reports. Oppenheimer reaffirmed a “market perform” rating and set a $14.00 target price on shares of Stellus Capital Investment in a research report on Wednesday, March 6th. B. Riley reiterated a “sell” rating and set a $12.50 price target (down previously from $13.00) on shares of Stellus Capital Investment in a research note on Wednesday, March 6th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded Stellus Capital Investment from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 13th.

Stellus Capital Investment Company Profile

Stellus Capital Investment Corporation is a business development company specializing in investments in private middle-market companies. It invests through first lien, second lien, unitranche, and mezzanine debt financing, often with a corresponding equity investment. The fund prefers to invest in US and Canada.