Short Interest in Eagle Point Credit Company Inc. (NYSE:ECC) Rises By 27.7%

Eagle Point Credit Company Inc. (NYSE:ECC) saw a large increase in short interest in the month of May. As of May 15th, there was short interest totalling 3,320,000 shares, an increase of 27.7% from the April 30th total of 2,600,000 shares. Currently, 4.3% of the shares of the company are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 1,473,600 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 2.3 days.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on ECC shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price objective on shares of Eagle Point Credit from $9.00 to $7.50 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 29th. Credit Suisse Group set a $7.50 target price on shares of Eagle Point Credit in a research note on Thursday.

Insider Transactions at Eagle Point Credit

In related news, CEO Thomas P. Majewski acquired 1,087 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 21st. The shares were bought at an average price of $23.00 per share, for a total transaction of $25,001.00. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer now owns 1,087 shares in the company, valued at $25,001. This trade represents a ∞ increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.17% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Eagle Point Credit

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC grew its stake in Eagle Point Credit by 20,306.0% during the fourth quarter. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC now owns 847,871 shares of the investment management company’s stock worth $7,580,000 after buying an additional 843,716 shares during the last quarter. Freestone Capital Holdings LLC grew its stake in Eagle Point Credit by 26.1% during the fourth quarter. Freestone Capital Holdings LLC now owns 222,083 shares of the investment management company’s stock worth $1,972,000 after buying an additional 46,006 shares during the last quarter. Balboa Wealth Partners acquired a new position in shares of Eagle Point Credit during the fourth quarter worth approximately $839,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Eagle Point Credit during the fourth quarter worth approximately $2,038,000. Finally, Thomas J. Herzfeld Advisors Inc. lifted its position in shares of Eagle Point Credit by 66.0% during the fourth quarter. Thomas J. Herzfeld Advisors Inc. now owns 206,460 shares of the investment management company’s stock worth $1,833,000 after purchasing an additional 82,061 shares in the last quarter. 19.50% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Eagle Point Credit Stock Performance

NYSE ECC opened at $7.85 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $603.66 million, a P/E ratio of 9.34 and a beta of 0.46. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $7.69 and its 200 day simple moving average is $8.41. Eagle Point Credit has a twelve month low of $6.54 and a twelve month high of $10.49. The company has a quick ratio of 2.27, a current ratio of 2.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18.

Eagle Point Credit (NYSE:ECC) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, May 28th. The investment management company reported $0.28 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.26 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $52.30 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $53.54 million. Eagle Point Credit had a net margin of 44.67% and a return on equity of 12.53%. As a group, research analysts forecast that Eagle Point Credit will post 1.1 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Eagle Point Credit Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a monthly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 30th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, September 10th will be paid a dividend of $0.14 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, September 10th. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 21.41%. Eagle Point Credit’s dividend payout ratio is -420.00%.

About Eagle Point Credit

Eagle Point Credit Company Inc is a closed ended fund launched and managed by Eagle Point Credit Management LLC. It invests in fixed income markets of the United States. The fund invests equity and junior debt tranches of collateralized loan obligations consisting primarily of below investment grade U.S.