Runway Growth Finance Corp. (NASDAQ:RWAY) Sees Large Increase in Short Interest

Runway Growth Finance Corp. (NASDAQ:RWAY) was the recipient of a significant increase in short interest in March. As of March 31st, there was short interest totalling 2,090,000 shares, an increase of 44.1% from the March 15th total of 1,450,000 shares. Approximately 5.7% of the company’s stock are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 329,100 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 6.4 days.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Runway Growth Finance

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. LPL Financial LLC boosted its stake in shares of Runway Growth Finance by 3.6% during the fourth quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 26,776 shares of the company’s stock valued at $293,000 after purchasing an additional 940 shares in the last quarter. Tidal Investments LLC raised its holdings in Runway Growth Finance by 2.3% in the 4th quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 45,315 shares of the company’s stock valued at $497,000 after buying an additional 1,018 shares during the last quarter. Confluence Investment Management LLC boosted its position in Runway Growth Finance by 2.5% during the 1st quarter. Confluence Investment Management LLC now owns 85,677 shares of the company’s stock worth $887,000 after buying an additional 2,056 shares during the period. Quarry LP bought a new stake in shares of Runway Growth Finance in the fourth quarter worth $30,000. Finally, Northern Trust Corp increased its holdings in Runway Growth Finance by 16.2% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 28,480 shares of the company’s stock valued at $312,000 after purchasing an additional 3,970 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 64.61% of the company’s stock.

Runway Growth Finance Price Performance

Shares of RWAY traded up $0.26 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $9.19. 281,762 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 334,622. The company has a quick ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 0.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.07. Runway Growth Finance has a fifty-two week low of $8.35 and a fifty-two week high of $13.50. The company has a market cap of $343.22 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.84 and a beta of 0.61. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $10.56 and its 200 day moving average is $10.66.

Runway Growth Finance (NASDAQ:RWAY) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, March 20th. The company reported $0.39 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.42 by ($0.03). Runway Growth Finance had a return on equity of 12.91% and a net margin of 27.05%. The firm had revenue of $33.78 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $36.10 million. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Runway Growth Finance will post 1.67 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Runway Growth Finance Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a — dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 14th. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st were given a dividend of $0.03 per share. This represents a yield of 15.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 31st. Runway Growth Finance’s dividend payout ratio is 69.11%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

RWAY has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. UBS Group cut their price target on shares of Runway Growth Finance from $13.00 to $11.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday. Compass Point lifted their price target on Runway Growth Finance from $11.50 to $12.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 1st. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on Runway Growth Finance from $11.00 to $12.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on Runway Growth Finance from $11.00 to $10.50 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, March 21st. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $11.67.

Runway Growth Finance Company Profile

Runway Growth Finance Corp. is a business development company specializing investments in senior-secured loans to late stage and growth companies. It prefers to make investments in companies engaged in the technology, life sciences, healthcare and information services, business services and select consumer services and products sectors.