Saratoga Investment Corp (NYSE:SAR) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Hold” by Analysts

Saratoga Investment Corp (NYSE:SAR) has received an average rating of “Hold” from the six research firms that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation. The average 12-month target price among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $21.50.

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on SAR. B. Riley Financial dropped their target price on Saratoga Investment from $23.00 to $22.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Saratoga Investment in a research report on Wednesday, June 24th. Wall Street Zen cut Saratoga Investment from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Saturday, May 9th. Finally, Oppenheimer cut their price objective on shares of Saratoga Investment from $22.00 to $21.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Saratoga Investment

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of SAR. BNP Paribas Financial Markets purchased a new position in shares of Saratoga Investment in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $25,000. Quantbot Technologies LP purchased a new stake in shares of Saratoga Investment during the third quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Advisory Services Network LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Saratoga Investment during the third quarter valued at approximately $45,000. Kestra Advisory Services LLC bought a new stake in Saratoga Investment during the fourth quarter worth $46,000. Finally, Daytona Street Capital LLC bought a new stake in Saratoga Investment during the fourth quarter worth $51,000. Institutional investors own 19.09% of the company’s stock.

Saratoga Investment Stock Performance

SAR opened at $17.44 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.09, a quick ratio of 0.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $22.11 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $22.63. Saratoga Investment has a 1-year low of $17.39 and a 1-year high of $25.64. The company has a market cap of $284.40 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.44 and a beta of 0.54.

Saratoga Investment (NYSE:SAR) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 7th. The financial services provider reported $0.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.54 by ($0.07). The company had revenue of ($12.15) million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $31.38 million. Saratoga Investment had a net margin of 12.70% and a return on equity of 8.76%. On average, analysts expect that Saratoga Investment will post 2.15 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Saratoga Investment Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a monthly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 23rd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, September 3rd will be given a $0.25 dividend. This represents a c) dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 17.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, September 3rd. Saratoga Investment’s dividend payout ratio is presently 300.00%.

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.