PennantPark Investment (NASDAQ:PNNT) Upgraded at LADENBURG THALM/SH SH

LADENBURG THALM/SH SH upgraded shares of PennantPark Investment (NASDAQ:PNNT) to a hold rating in a report released on Wednesday,Zacks.com reports.

PNNT has been the topic of a number of other reports. StockNews.com raised PennantPark Investment from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on PennantPark Investment from $7.00 to $6.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 24th.

PennantPark Investment Stock Up 1.5%

Shares of NASDAQ:PNNT opened at $6.81 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $444.73 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.20 and a beta of 1.02. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.56, a current ratio of 0.47 and a quick ratio of 0.47. The business’s 50-day moving average is $6.63 and its 200-day moving average is $6.88. PennantPark Investment has a 1 year low of $5.72 and a 1 year high of $8.04.

PennantPark Investment Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a monthly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 2nd. Investors of record on Thursday, May 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.08 per share. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 14.09%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 15th. PennantPark Investment’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 640.00%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Jose A. Briones acquired 3,640 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 14th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $6.88 per share, with a total value of $25,043.20. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 268,972 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,850,527.36. This trade represents a 1.37% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 3.00% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of PennantPark Investment

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Two Sigma Advisers LP increased its holdings in PennantPark Investment by 10.7% during the 4th quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP now owns 1,318,818 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $9,337,000 after purchasing an additional 127,100 shares in the last quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP increased its holdings in PennantPark Investment by 24.2% during the 4th quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP now owns 914,375 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $6,474,000 after purchasing an additional 178,423 shares in the last quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. increased its holdings in PennantPark Investment by 3.7% during the 1st quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 610,144 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $4,289,000 after purchasing an additional 21,836 shares in the last quarter. Truvestments Capital LLC increased its holdings in PennantPark Investment by 55.8% during the 1st quarter. Truvestments Capital LLC now owns 596,573 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $4,194,000 after purchasing an additional 213,773 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Millennium Management LLC bought a new stake in PennantPark Investment during the 4th quarter worth approximately $3,097,000. 26.62% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About PennantPark Investment

PennantPark Investment Corporation, a business development company is a private equity fund specializes in direct and mezzanine investments in middle market companies. It invests in the form of mezzanine debt, senior secured loans, and equity investments. The fund typically invests in buildings and real estate, hotels, gaming and leisure, technology, telecommunications, transportation, information technology services, electronics, healthcare & pharmaceuticals, education and childcare, financial services, printing and publishing, consumer products, business services, energy & Related Services and utilities, distribution, oil and gas, media, environmental services, aerospace and defense, building materials, capital equipment, chemicals, plastics, & rubber, food & beverage, wholesale, manufacturing and basic industries and retail.