Analysts Set Runway Growth Finance Corp. (NASDAQ:RWAY) Price Target at $11.10

Runway Growth Finance Corp. (NASDAQ:RWAY) has been assigned a consensus recommendation of “Hold” from the seven analysts that are currently covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and three have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year price objective among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $11.10.

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on shares of Runway Growth Finance from $10.50 to $10.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, October 1st. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Runway Growth Finance in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Finally, UBS Group reduced their price objective on Runway Growth Finance from $12.50 to $12.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, November 19th.

Runway Growth Finance Stock Performance

Shares of Runway Growth Finance stock opened at $9.26 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $334.56 million, a P/E ratio of 6.30 and a beta of 0.67. The company has a current ratio of 0.54, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.91. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $9.21 and its 200 day simple moving average is $10.06. Runway Growth Finance has a 12 month low of $8.35 and a 12 month high of $11.73.

Runway Growth Finance (NASDAQ:RWAY) last released its earnings results on Thursday, November 6th. The company reported $0.43 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.38 by $0.05. Runway Growth Finance had a return on equity of 11.94% and a net margin of 38.92%.The company had revenue of $36.75 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $35.11 million. As a group, analysts anticipate that Runway Growth Finance will post 1.67 EPS for the current year.

Runway Growth Finance Cuts Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, December 3rd. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 17th were paid a dividend of $0.33 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, November 17th. This represents a $1.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 14.3%. Runway Growth Finance’s dividend payout ratio is presently 89.80%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Runway Growth Finance

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in Runway Growth Finance during the second quarter worth about $51,000. Osaic Holdings Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Runway Growth Finance by 92.6% during the 2nd quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 5,515 shares of the company’s stock valued at $59,000 after buying an additional 2,651 shares in the last quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC boosted its holdings in Runway Growth Finance by 74,437.5% in the 2nd quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 5,963 shares of the company’s stock worth $64,000 after buying an additional 5,955 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. bought a new position in Runway Growth Finance in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $109,000. Finally, State of Wyoming grew its stake in Runway Growth Finance by 18.2% in the 2nd quarter. State of Wyoming now owns 11,252 shares of the company’s stock valued at $121,000 after buying an additional 1,732 shares in the last quarter. 64.61% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Runway Growth Finance

Runway Growth Finance, Inc is a publicly traded business development company that provides customized debt and equity financing solutions to high‐growth, venture‐backed companies. The firm specializes in structuring senior secured loans, unitranche facilities, second‐lien financings, convertible notes and equity co‐investments designed to extend the cash runway for late‐stage companies. Runway’s flexible capital offerings are aimed at supporting technology, life sciences and other innovation‐driven sectors as they pursue growth initiatives and prepare for liquidity events.

Originally launched in 2017 under the name Saratoga Investment Corp., the company rebranded as Runway Growth Finance in 2020 following the acquisition of an established middle‐market credit manager.