Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending (NYSE:NCDL) Upgraded to “Hold” at Wall Street Zen

Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending (NYSE:NCDL) was upgraded by stock analysts at Wall Street Zen from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note issued on Tuesday.

NCDL has been the topic of several other reports. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending from $14.00 to $13.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, March 4th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price objective on Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending from $16.00 to $15.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 27th. Truist Financial lowered their price objective on Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending from $18.00 to $16.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, March 4th. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded shares of Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, January 9th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $15.40.

Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending Stock Performance

Shares of NCDL opened at $13.33 on Tuesday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $13.54 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $14.20. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.27, a current ratio of 1.85 and a quick ratio of 1.85. The firm has a market capitalization of $658.52 million, a PE ratio of 10.18 and a beta of 0.44. Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending has a one year low of $12.54 and a one year high of $17.59.

Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending (NYSE:NCDL) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 26th. The company reported $0.44 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.43 by $0.01. Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending had a return on equity of 10.48% and a net margin of 31.57%.The firm had revenue of $26.36 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $49.60 million. On average, analysts anticipate that Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending will post 2.28 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending

In related news, Director Kenneth M. Miranda purchased 3,000 shares of Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 3rd. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $12.83 per share, for a total transaction of $38,490.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director directly owned 30,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $384,900. The trade was a 11.11% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Mat Linett purchased 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 6th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $13.05 per share, with a total value of $26,100.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 10,365 shares in the company, valued at $135,263.25. The trade was a 23.91% increase in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. In the last 90 days, insiders bought 24,690 shares of company stock valued at $324,636. 0.62% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of NCDL. BNP Paribas Financial Markets lifted its stake in shares of Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending by 190.2% in the third quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 2,400 shares of the company’s stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 1,573 shares in the last quarter. Advisory Services Network LLC bought a new stake in shares of Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending during the third quarter valued at approximately $38,000. NewEdge Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending by 33.0% in the 2nd quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 4,511 shares of the company’s stock worth $73,000 after acquiring an additional 1,118 shares during the last quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC purchased a new position in Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $80,000. Finally, Global Retirement Partners LLC bought a new position in Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $85,000.

Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending Company Profile

Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending (NYSE:NCDL) is a closed-end management investment company that seeks to provide shareholders with attractive risk-adjusted returns through a diversified portfolio of direct lending instruments. Established in early 2022, NCDL focuses on privately negotiated debt investments in middle-market companies, primarily within the United States. The fund offers investors access to a segment of the credit markets that has historically been less correlated with public debt markets, aiming to capture yield premiums associated with private lending.

The fund’s investment strategy centers on senior secured loans, unitranche financings and selectively structured mezzanine debt.