Oaktree Specialty Lending (NASDAQ:OCSL) Upgraded by Wall Street Zen to Hold Rating

Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Oaktree Specialty Lending (NASDAQ:OCSL) from a sell rating to a hold rating in a research report released on Saturday.

Other research analysts have also issued research reports about the stock. Zacks Research lowered shares of Oaktree Specialty Lending from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Monday, February 9th. Lucid Cap Mkts raised shares of Oaktree Specialty Lending to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, December 15th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on shares of Oaktree Specialty Lending from $13.00 to $12.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 5th. Finally, Weiss Ratings downgraded Oaktree Specialty Lending from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a research note on Monday, February 9th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Oaktree Specialty Lending presently has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and a consensus price target of $13.75.

Oaktree Specialty Lending Stock Down 2.4%

NASDAQ OCSL opened at $11.56 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $12.58 and a 200-day moving average of $13.19. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.11 and a beta of 0.52. Oaktree Specialty Lending has a 52 week low of $11.52 and a 52 week high of $16.29. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a quick ratio of 0.16 and a current ratio of 0.16.

Oaktree Specialty Lending (NASDAQ:OCSL) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 4th. The credit services provider reported $0.41 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.38 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $74.48 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $75.72 million. Oaktree Specialty Lending had a return on equity of 9.75% and a net margin of 10.58%.During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.54 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Oaktree Specialty Lending will post 2.06 EPS for the current year.

Oaktree Specialty Lending Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 16th will be issued a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 16th. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 13.8%. Oaktree Specialty Lending’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 444.44%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Oaktree Specialty Lending

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Private Management Group Inc. raised its stake in Oaktree Specialty Lending by 8.1% during the 4th quarter. Private Management Group Inc. now owns 3,259,370 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $41,524,000 after buying an additional 245,207 shares during the period. Bruni J V & Co. Co. increased its holdings in shares of Oaktree Specialty Lending by 0.3% in the fourth quarter. Bruni J V & Co. Co. now owns 2,495,710 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $31,795,000 after acquiring an additional 8,691 shares in the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp raised its position in shares of Oaktree Specialty Lending by 6.6% during the third quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 2,173,257 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $28,361,000 after purchasing an additional 134,557 shares during the period. Generali Asset Management SPA SGR raised its position in shares of Oaktree Specialty Lending by 10.6% during the third quarter. Generali Asset Management SPA SGR now owns 2,087,981 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $27,248,000 after purchasing an additional 199,415 shares during the period. Finally, Claret Asset Management Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Oaktree Specialty Lending by 11.8% during the 2nd quarter. Claret Asset Management Corp now owns 1,700,738 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $23,232,000 after purchasing an additional 179,563 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 36.79% of the company’s stock.

Oaktree Specialty Lending Company Profile

Oaktree Specialty Lending Corporation (NASDAQ: OCSL) is a closed-end, externally managed specialty finance company structured as a business development company (BDC). Launched in 2014, Oaktree Specialty Lending provides customized debt solutions to U.S. middle-market companies, with a focus on senior secured loans, second-lien financings, mezzanine debt and select equity co-investments. The company’s investment strategy centers on floating-rate instruments designed to offer downside protection and income potential in varying interest rate environments.

The firm’s portfolio spans a diverse array of industries, including healthcare, technology, energy, business services and consumer products.