Oaktree Specialty Lending (NASDAQ:OCSL) Hits New 52-Week Low – Here’s Why

Oaktree Specialty Lending Corp. (NASDAQ:OCSL) reached a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Thursday . The stock traded as low as $11.92 and last traded at $11.9140, with a volume of 224285 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $12.03.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently weighed in on OCSL. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on shares of Oaktree Specialty Lending from $13.00 to $12.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 5th. Weiss Ratings lowered Oaktree Specialty Lending from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a report on Monday, February 9th. Wall Street Zen lowered Oaktree Specialty Lending from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Saturday, February 7th. Lucid Cap Mkts raised Oaktree Specialty Lending to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, December 15th. Finally, Zacks Research lowered shares of Oaktree Specialty Lending from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Monday, February 9th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Oaktree Specialty Lending currently has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and an average price target of $13.75.

Oaktree Specialty Lending Stock Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 0.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $12.65 and a 200-day simple moving average of $13.21. The company has a market capitalization of $1.04 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.79 and a beta of 0.52.

Oaktree Specialty Lending (NASDAQ:OCSL) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 4th. The credit services provider reported $0.41 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.38 by $0.03. Oaktree Specialty Lending had a net margin of 10.58% and a return on equity of 9.75%. The business had revenue of $74.48 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $75.72 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.54 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Oaktree Specialty Lending Corp. will post 2.06 EPS for the current year.

Oaktree Specialty Lending Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 16th will be issued a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 13.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 16th. Oaktree Specialty Lending’s payout ratio is presently 444.44%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Oaktree Specialty Lending

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of OCSL. Royal Bank of Canada increased its stake in shares of Oaktree Specialty Lending by 34.3% in the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 468,879 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $7,201,000 after buying an additional 119,775 shares in the last quarter. Atria Wealth Solutions Inc. grew its holdings in Oaktree Specialty Lending by 23.0% during the 2nd quarter. Atria Wealth Solutions Inc. now owns 23,186 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $317,000 after acquiring an additional 4,331 shares during the last quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. increased its position in Oaktree Specialty Lending by 7.1% in the 2nd quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. now owns 240,769 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $3,289,000 after acquiring an additional 16,061 shares in the last quarter. Whipplewood Advisors LLC increased its position in Oaktree Specialty Lending by 138,043.4% in the 2nd quarter. Whipplewood Advisors LLC now owns 73,216 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $1,000,000 after acquiring an additional 73,163 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Pasadena Private Wealth LLC bought a new position in shares of Oaktree Specialty Lending in the second quarter worth about $395,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 36.79% of the company’s stock.

About Oaktree Specialty Lending

Oaktree Specialty Lending Corporation (NASDAQ: OCSL) is a closed-end, externally managed specialty finance company structured as a business development company (BDC). Launched in 2014, Oaktree Specialty Lending provides customized debt solutions to U.S. middle-market companies, with a focus on senior secured loans, second-lien financings, mezzanine debt and select equity co-investments. The company’s investment strategy centers on floating-rate instruments designed to offer downside protection and income potential in varying interest rate environments.

The firm’s portfolio spans a diverse array of industries, including healthcare, technology, energy, business services and consumer products.