Raymond James & Associates Buys 32,647 Shares of SLR Investment Corp. (NASDAQ:SLRC)

Raymond James & Associates increased its stake in shares of SLR Investment Corp. (NASDAQ:SLRC) by 41.0% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 112,343 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 32,647 shares during the period. Raymond James & Associates owned about 0.21% of SLR Investment worth $1,689,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of SLRC. Citigroup Inc. bought a new stake in SLR Investment during the third quarter worth about $25,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in SLR Investment during the third quarter worth about $28,000. Comerica Bank bought a new stake in SLR Investment during the third quarter worth about $28,000. Nelson Van Denburg & Campbell Wealth Management Group LLC bought a new stake in SLR Investment during the first quarter worth about $29,000. Finally, Tower Research Capital LLC TRC raised its holdings in SLR Investment by 614.8% during the third quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 2,323 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 1,998 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 35.32% of the company’s stock.

SLR Investment Price Performance

SLR Investment stock opened at $14.91 on Thursday. SLR Investment Corp. has a 12 month low of $13.48 and a 12 month high of $15.86. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $15.09 and its 200-day moving average is $15.03. The company has a current ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19. The company has a market capitalization of $813.49 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.65 and a beta of 1.11.

SLR Investment (NASDAQ:SLRC) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, February 27th. The financial services provider reported $0.44 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.43 by $0.01. SLR Investment had a return on equity of 9.36% and a net margin of 33.31%. The company had revenue of $59.79 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $59.00 million. Equities research analysts expect that SLR Investment Corp. will post 1.73 EPS for the current year.

SLR Investment Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 28th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 14th were given a $0.41 dividend. This represents a $1.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 11.00%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 13th. SLR Investment’s payout ratio is 117.14%.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Michael S. Gross purchased 22,636 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 8th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $15.74 per share, for a total transaction of $356,290.64. Following the completion of the purchase, the insider now owns 3,804,860 shares in the company, valued at approximately $59,888,496.40. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In related news, insider Michael S. Gross purchased 22,636 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 8th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $15.74 per share, for a total transaction of $356,290.64. Following the completion of the purchase, the insider now owns 3,804,860 shares in the company, valued at approximately $59,888,496.40. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Michael S. Gross purchased 40,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 4th. The stock was bought at an average price of $15.08 per share, with a total value of $603,200.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the insider now owns 3,642,124 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $54,923,229.92. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have bought 109,336 shares of company stock valued at $1,680,539. 8.20% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on SLRC shares. B. Riley boosted their price target on SLR Investment from $15.00 to $16.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on SLR Investment from $15.50 to $15.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 29th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and four have issued a hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, SLR Investment currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $14.25.

About SLR Investment

SLR Investment Corp. is a business development company specializing in secured debt (first lien unitranche and second lien), subordinated (unsecured) debt, minority equity, leveraged buyouts, acquisitions, recapitalizations, general refinancing, growth capital and strategic income-oriented control equity investments in leveraged middle market companies.