Saratoga Investment (NYSE:SAR) Given New $22.00 Price Target at B. Riley Financial

Saratoga Investment (NYSE:SAR) had its price objective trimmed by B. Riley Financial from $23.00 to $22.00 in a report released on Thursday morning,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a neutral rating on the financial services provider’s stock.

Other equities research analysts also recently issued reports about the stock. Oppenheimer lowered their price target 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. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Saratoga Investment in a report on Wednesday, June 24th. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut shares of Saratoga Investment from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Saturday, May 9th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $21.50.

Saratoga Investment Price Performance

Shares of NYSE SAR opened at $17.44 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $284.40 million, a PE ratio of 17.44 and a beta of 0.54. Saratoga Investment has a fifty-two week low of $17.39 and a fifty-two week high of $25.64. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18, a quick ratio of 0.04 and a current ratio of 0.09. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $22.11 and a 200-day moving average of $22.63.

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

Saratoga Investment Announces Dividend

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

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Saratoga Investment

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

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.