Saratoga Investment (NYSE:SAR) Issues Earnings Results, Misses Estimates By $0.07 EPS

Saratoga Investment (NYSE:SAR) issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday. The financial services provider reported $0.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.54 by ($0.07), FiscalAI reports. The firm had revenue of ($12.15) million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $31.38 million. Saratoga Investment had a return on equity of 9.29% and a net margin of 29.12%.

Saratoga Investment Price Performance

Shares of SAR stock traded down $0.43 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $20.98. The company had a trading volume of 240,469 shares, compared to its average volume of 117,629. The company has a market capitalization of $341.43 million, a P/E ratio of 9.01 and a beta of 0.54. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $22.33 and its 200-day moving average price is $22.72. Saratoga Investment has a 52-week low of $20.78 and a 52-week high of $25.64. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18, a current ratio of 0.04 and a quick ratio of 0.04.

Saratoga Investment Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a monthly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 23rd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, September 3rd will be given a $0.25 dividend. This represents a c) annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 14.3%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, September 3rd. Saratoga Investment’s payout ratio is presently 128.76%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Saratoga Investment

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. BNP Paribas Financial Markets purchased a new stake in Saratoga Investment in the third quarter worth about $25,000. Quantbot Technologies LP purchased a new stake in shares of Saratoga Investment in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $36,000. Advisory Services Network LLC bought a new position in shares of Saratoga Investment during the third quarter valued at approximately $45,000. Kestra Advisory Services LLC purchased a new position in Saratoga Investment during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $46,000. Finally, Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC increased its holdings in Saratoga Investment by 610.1% during the fourth quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 5,212 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $120,000 after buying an additional 4,478 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 19.09% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

SAR has been the subject of several recent research reports. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Saratoga Investment from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Saturday, May 9th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Saratoga Investment in a report on Wednesday, June 24th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $23.00.

Saratoga Investment Company Profile

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.