Saratoga Investment (NYSE:SAR) Share Price Passes Above 200-Day Moving Average – Should You Sell?

Saratoga Investment Corp (NYSE:SAR)’s share price crossed above its two hundred day moving average during trading on Wednesday . The stock has a two hundred day moving average of $23.62 and traded as high as $23.79. Saratoga Investment shares last traded at $23.44, with a volume of 194,664 shares trading hands.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently issued reports on SAR shares. Janney Montgomery Scott reaffirmed a “neutral” rating on shares of Saratoga Investment in a report on Friday, October 10th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Saratoga Investment in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Saratoga Investment from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, December 15th. B. Riley reduced their target price on shares of Saratoga Investment from $23.50 to $23.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 16th. Finally, LADENBURG THALM/SH SH upgraded shares of Saratoga Investment to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 9th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, According to MarketBeat, Saratoga Investment currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $23.63.

Saratoga Investment Trading Down 1.5%

The company’s 50 day moving average price is $23.19 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $23.62. The firm has a market cap of $379.26 million, a PE ratio of 9.61 and a beta of 0.56. The company has a quick ratio of 0.25, a current ratio of 0.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17.

Saratoga Investment (NYSE:SAR) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 7th. The financial services provider reported $0.61 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.59 by $0.02. Saratoga Investment had a net margin of 30.61% and a return on equity of 9.19%. The company had revenue of $23.41 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $31.35 million. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Saratoga Investment Corp will post 3.93 EPS for the current year.

Saratoga Investment Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a monthly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 19th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 3rd will be given a $0.25 dividend. This represents a c) annualized dividend and a yield of 12.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 3rd. Saratoga Investment’s dividend payout ratio is 122.95%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. International Assets Investment Management LLC increased its stake in Saratoga Investment by 17.5% in the 4th quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 61,809 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,426,000 after buying an additional 9,199 shares during the period. Daytona Street Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Saratoga Investment during the fourth quarter worth approximately $51,000. Wealthcare Advisory Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of Saratoga Investment by 10.7% during the fourth quarter. Wealthcare Advisory Partners LLC now owns 49,471 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,141,000 after acquiring an additional 4,791 shares in the last quarter. Focus Financial Network Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Saratoga Investment by 24.3% in the fourth quarter. Focus Financial Network Inc. now owns 19,455 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $449,000 after purchasing an additional 3,800 shares during the period. Finally, Sunbelt Securities Inc. grew its stake in Saratoga Investment by 163.3% in the third quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. now owns 13,382 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $326,000 after purchasing an additional 8,300 shares in the last quarter. 19.09% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Saratoga Investment

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.