Brokerages Set Saratoga Investment Corp (NYSE:SAR) Target Price at $23.63

Saratoga Investment Corp (NYSE:SAR) has received a consensus rating of “Hold” from the six analysts that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating. The average 12 month price objective among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $23.6250.

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. Zacks Research raised Saratoga Investment from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, December 15th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Saratoga Investment in a report on Monday, December 29th.

Saratoga Investment Stock Down 0.2%

Shares of NYSE SAR opened at $20.87 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $338.56 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.55 and a beta of 0.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17, a current ratio of 0.25 and a quick ratio of 0.25. The business has a 50-day moving average of $23.03 and a two-hundred day moving average of $23.03. Saratoga Investment has a 1 year low of $20.78 and a 1 year high of $25.64.

Saratoga Investment (NYSE:SAR) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 7th. The financial services provider reported $0.61 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.59 by $0.02. Saratoga Investment had a return on equity of 9.19% and a net margin of 30.61%.The business had revenue of $23.41 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $31.35 million. On average, analysts forecast that Saratoga Investment will post 3.93 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Saratoga Investment Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a monthly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 23rd. Investors of record on Thursday, June 4th will be given a $0.25 dividend. This represents a c) dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 14.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, June 4th. Saratoga Investment’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 122.95%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Saratoga Investment

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. BNP Paribas Financial Markets purchased a new position in shares of Saratoga Investment during the third quarter worth about $25,000. Quantbot Technologies LP acquired a new stake in shares of Saratoga Investment during the third quarter worth about $36,000. Advisory Services Network LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Saratoga Investment in the 3rd quarter valued at about $45,000. Kestra Advisory Services LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Saratoga Investment in the 4th quarter valued at about $46,000. Finally, Daytona Street Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Saratoga Investment in the 4th quarter valued at about $51,000. 19.09% of the stock is 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.