Saratoga Investment (NYSE:SAR) Price Target Cut to $21.00 by Analysts at Oppenheimer

Saratoga Investment (NYSE:SAR) had its price target cut by Oppenheimer from $22.00 to $21.00 in a research note released on Thursday, Marketbeat reports. They currently have a market perform rating on the financial services provider’s stock.

SAR has been the subject of a number of other reports. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Saratoga Investment in a research report on Wednesday, June 24th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Saratoga Investment from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Saturday, May 9th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $21.50.

Saratoga Investment Stock Down 3.0%

Shares of NYSE:SAR opened at $17.44 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 0.09, a quick ratio of 0.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18. Saratoga Investment has a 12 month low of $17.39 and a 12 month high of $25.64. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $22.11 and a 200 day moving average price of $22.63. 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 for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.54 by ($0.07). Saratoga Investment had a net margin of 12.70% and a return on equity of 8.76%. The company had revenue of ($12.15) million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $31.38 million. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Saratoga Investment will post 2.15 earnings per share for the current year.

Saratoga Investment Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared 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. This represents a c) annualized dividend and a dividend 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%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in SAR. Closed End Fund Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in Saratoga Investment during the fourth quarter worth about $3,680,000. Western Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Saratoga Investment in the first quarter valued at approximately $70,000. Cetera Investment Advisers lifted its holdings in Saratoga Investment by 2.2% in the first quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 22,301 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $488,000 after acquiring an additional 476 shares during the period. Greenwood Gearhart LLC acquired a new position in Saratoga Investment in the first quarter valued at approximately $389,000. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC boosted its position in Saratoga Investment by 33.3% in the 1st quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 82,407 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,762,000 after purchasing an additional 20,598 shares in the last quarter. 19.09% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other 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.