SLR Investment (NASDAQ:SLRC) Reaches New 52-Week Low – Time to Sell?

SLR Investment Corp. (NASDAQ:SLRC) shares reached a new 52-week low on Monday. The stock traded as low as $11.46 and last traded at $11.4530, with a volume of 255064 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $11.55.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on SLRC shares. Wall Street Zen raised shares of SLR Investment from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, September 26th. B. Riley Financial downgraded SLR Investment from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on SLR Investment from $13.50 to $12.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, July 2nd. Weiss Ratings cut SLR Investment from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 28th. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded SLR Investment from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 11th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $14.10.

SLR Investment Price Performance

The company’s fifty day moving average price is $12.45 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $13.24. The company has a quick ratio of 1.09, a current ratio of 1.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17. The company has a market cap of $624.17 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.47 and a beta of 0.69.

SLR Investment (NASDAQ:SLRC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 4th. The financial services provider reported $0.33 EPS for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.33. The business had revenue of $20.50 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $48.82 million. SLR Investment had a net margin of 35.20% and a return on equity of 7.96%. On average, equities research analysts forecast that SLR Investment Corp. will post 1.31 EPS for the current fiscal year.

SLR Investment Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 25th. Investors of record on Friday, September 11th were given a $0.31 dividend. This represents a $1.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 10.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, September 11th. SLR Investment’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 91.85%.

Insider Activity

In other SLR Investment news, insider Michael Gross acquired 20,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 10th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $12.35 per share, with a total value of $247,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 4,065,153 shares in the company, valued at $50,204,639.55. This trade represents a 0.49% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 8.80% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of SLR Investment

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Legal & General Group Plc acquired a new position in SLR Investment during the second quarter valued at approximately $5,516,000. Clear Harbor Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of SLR Investment during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $4,205,000. Van ECK Associates Corp increased its position in shares of SLR Investment by 24.8% during the 2nd quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 1,104,114 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $13,658,000 after purchasing an additional 219,110 shares during the last quarter. BlackRock Inc. bought a new stake in shares of SLR Investment during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $2,513,000. Finally, North Ground Capital bought a new stake in shares of SLR Investment during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $2,078,160. Institutional investors own 35.32% of the company’s stock.

SLR Investment Company Profile

SLR Investment Corp. (NASDAQ: SLRC) is a closed-end business development company that provides financing to middle-market companies. The company primarily invests in privately held businesses through senior secured loans, including first-lien and unitranche loans, and may also make subordinated debt and equity investments.

SLR Investment focuses on companies with established operations across a range of industries. Its investment strategy is designed to provide businesses with capital for acquisitions, recapitalizations, growth initiatives, refinancings and other general corporate purposes.