Saratoga Investment Corp (NYSE:SAR) Sees Significant Growth in Short Interest

Saratoga Investment Corp (NYSE:SAR) was the target of a significant growth in short interest during the month of February. As of February 13th, there was short interest totaling 515,562 shares, a growth of 20.7% from the January 29th total of 427,171 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 151,951 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 3.4 days. Currently, 3.5% of the company’s shares are short sold. Currently, 3.5% of the company’s shares are short sold. Based on an average trading volume of 151,951 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 3.4 days.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Saratoga Investment

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in SAR. Lido Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Saratoga Investment by 0.6% in the 4th quarter. Lido Advisors LLC now owns 199,138 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $4,855,000 after buying an additional 1,265 shares in the last quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC raised its stake in shares of Saratoga Investment by 3.2% in the fourth quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 163,359 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $3,769,000 after acquiring an additional 5,073 shares during the last quarter. Closed End Fund Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in Saratoga Investment during the 4th quarter worth $3,680,000. Advisors Asset Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Saratoga Investment by 9.8% in the third quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 115,641 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,820,000 after acquiring an additional 10,356 shares during the last quarter. Finally, LPL Financial LLC boosted its stake in shares of Saratoga Investment by 4.6% in the 4th quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 113,727 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,624,000 after purchasing an additional 4,998 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 19.09% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on SAR. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Saratoga Investment in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Zacks Research upgraded Saratoga Investment from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, December 15th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $23.63.

Saratoga Investment Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE SAR opened at $23.46 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $379.58 million, a PE ratio of 9.61 and a beta of 0.55. Saratoga Investment has a 12 month low of $21.10 and a 12 month high of $25.75. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17, a current ratio of 0.25 and a quick ratio of 0.25. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $23.30 and a 200-day simple moving average of $23.38.

Saratoga Investment (NYSE:SAR) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, January 7th. The financial services provider reported $0.61 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.59 by $0.02. Saratoga Investment had a return on equity of 9.19% and a net margin of 30.61%.The company had revenue of $23.41 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $31.35 million. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Saratoga Investment will post 3.93 earnings per share for the current year.

Saratoga Investment Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a monthly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 19th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 3rd will be issued a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 3rd. This represents a c) dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 12.8%. Saratoga Investment’s dividend payout ratio is currently 122.95%.

About Saratoga Investment

Saratoga Investment Corp. is a closed-end, externally managed investment company that seeks to generate current income and total return through a diversified portfolio of private U.S. companies. Trading on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker SAR, the firm primarily targets middle-market businesses across a broad range of industries, including industrials, healthcare, consumer products, financial services and technology. Its investment approach combines debt and equity instruments, providing flexible capital solutions such as first-lien and second-lien secured loans, mezzanine debt, preferred equity and common equity positions.

As an actively managed vehicle, Saratoga Investment works closely with portfolio companies’ management teams to support growth initiatives, operational improvements, and strategic transactions.