Stellus Capital Investment Co. (NYSE:SCM) Short Interest Update

Stellus Capital Investment Co. (NYSE:SCM) was the target of a significant decrease in short interest in the month of June. As of June 15th, there was short interest totalling 117,500 shares, a decrease of 53.9% from the May 31st total of 254,700 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 155,200 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 0.8 days.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on SCM. Oppenheimer restated a “market perform” rating and set a $14.00 price target on shares of Stellus Capital Investment in a report on Wednesday, March 6th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Stellus Capital Investment from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 13th. Finally, B. Riley raised shares of Stellus Capital Investment from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $12.50 to $13.25 in a report on Monday, May 13th.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Stellus Capital Investment

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co lifted its holdings in shares of Stellus Capital Investment by 4.2% in the 1st quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co now owns 20,395 shares of the investment management company’s stock valued at $267,000 after acquiring an additional 827 shares during the last quarter. Jump Financial LLC raised its stake in shares of Stellus Capital Investment by 5.8% during the fourth quarter. Jump Financial LLC now owns 19,600 shares of the investment management company’s stock valued at $252,000 after acquiring an additional 1,081 shares in the last quarter. Gables Capital Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Stellus Capital Investment by 1.2% in the 4th quarter. Gables Capital Management Inc. now owns 99,334 shares of the investment management company’s stock worth $1,276,000 after buying an additional 1,135 shares during the period. Cliffwater LLC grew its holdings in Stellus Capital Investment by 2.9% during the 1st quarter. Cliffwater LLC now owns 99,960 shares of the investment management company’s stock worth $1,295,000 after acquiring an additional 2,771 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Virtu Financial LLC bought a new position in shares of Stellus Capital Investment during the first quarter valued at approximately $143,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 13.22% of the company’s stock.

Stellus Capital Investment Price Performance

Shares of SCM traded up $0.15 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $13.73. The stock had a trading volume of 93,170 shares, compared to its average volume of 130,202. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.30, a quick ratio of 0.31 and a current ratio of 0.31. The business has a fifty day moving average of $13.95 and a 200 day moving average of $13.35. The firm has a market cap of $331.30 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.71 and a beta of 1.15. Stellus Capital Investment has a 12 month low of $12.19 and a 12 month high of $15.40.

Stellus Capital Investment (NYSE:SCM) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 9th. The investment management company reported $0.44 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.46 by ($0.02). The business had revenue of $26.00 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $25.98 million. Stellus Capital Investment had a return on equity of 14.08% and a net margin of 24.08%. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.45 EPS. Equities analysts predict that Stellus Capital Investment will post 1.73 EPS for the current year.

Stellus Capital Investment Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a monthly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 28th will be given a dividend of $0.1333 per share. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 11.65%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 28th. Stellus Capital Investment’s payout ratio is currently 148.15%.

About Stellus Capital Investment

Stellus Capital Investment Corporation is a business development company specializing in investments in private middle-market companies. It invests through first lien, second lien, unitranche, and mezzanine debt financing, often with a corresponding equity investment. The fund prefers to invest in US and Canada.