SLR Investment (NASDAQ:SLRC) Reaches New 52-Week Low – Here’s What Happened

SLR Investment Corp. (NASDAQ:SLRC)’s stock price reached a new 52-week low during trading on Friday . The stock traded as low as $12.82 and last traded at $12.8220, with a volume of 224165 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $13.15.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have commented on the stock. Raymond James Financial set a $16.00 price target on shares of SLR Investment and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 25th. Zacks Research downgraded shares of SLR Investment from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Friday, May 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on shares of SLR Investment from $14.00 to $13.50 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their target price on shares of SLR Investment from $16.50 to $15.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, March 30th. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of SLR Investment from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Saturday, May 9th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and a consensus target price of $14.40.

SLR Investment Trading Down 2.7%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15, a current ratio of 1.04 and a quick ratio of 1.04. The business’s 50 day moving average is $14.27 and its 200 day moving average is $14.83. The stock has a market cap of $697.82 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.80 and a beta of 0.64.

SLR Investment (NASDAQ:SLRC) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The financial services provider reported $0.33 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.40 by ($0.07). The firm had revenue of $47.14 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $54.01 million. SLR Investment had a return on equity of 8.33% and a net margin of 41.81%. As a group, equities analysts expect that SLR Investment Corp. will post 1.33 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

SLR Investment Cuts Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 26th. Investors of record on Friday, June 12th will be given a $0.31 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 12th. This represents a $1.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 9.7%. SLR Investment’s payout ratio is 100.00%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Michael S. Gross purchased 10,000 shares of SLR Investment stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 12th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $13.09 per share, with a total value of $130,900.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 4,035,153 shares in the company, valued at approximately $52,820,152.77. The trade was a 0.25% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders have acquired 45,452 shares of company stock valued at $623,933 over the last three months. 8.80% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On SLR Investment

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Kelleher Financial Advisors purchased a new stake in SLR Investment in the fourth quarter valued at $26,000. BNP Paribas Financial Markets lifted its position in SLR Investment by 1,389.8% in the third quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 1,758 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 1,640 shares during the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in SLR Investment in the fourth quarter valued at $42,000. Russell Investments Group Ltd. purchased a new stake in SLR Investment in the third quarter valued at $48,000. Finally, Greykasell Wealth Strategies Inc. purchased a new stake in SLR Investment in the fourth quarter valued at $59,000. 35.32% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

SLR Investment Company Profile

SLR Investment Corp. (NASDAQ: SLRC) is a closed‐end, externally managed business development company that provides customized debt and equity financing solutions to middle‐market companies. The firm seeks to generate current income and capital appreciation by investing primarily in senior secured loans, second lien financings, mezzanine debt and equity co‐investments. Its flexible capital approach allows it to structure financing across the capital structure to address a range of sponsor‐backed transactions.

SLR Investment Corp.