Blue Owl Technology Finance (NYSE:OTF) Hits New 52-Week Low Following Analyst Downgrade

Blue Owl Technology Finance Corp. (NYSE:OTF) hit a new 52-week low during trading on Friday after Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on the stock from $15.00 to $13.00. Wells Fargo & Company currently has an overweight rating on the stock. Blue Owl Technology Finance traded as low as $11.65 and last traded at $11.73, with a volume of 2700117 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $12.31.

Separately, Zacks Research upgraded Blue Owl Technology Finance from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, January 26th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $13.00.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Orange County Employees Retirement System purchased a new stake in Blue Owl Technology Finance during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $116,497,000. Capricorn Investment Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Blue Owl Technology Finance in the 4th quarter valued at $78,915,000. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its stake in shares of Blue Owl Technology Finance by 155,006.8% during the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 1,754,258 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,507,000 after buying an additional 1,753,127 shares during the last quarter. Rivernorth Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Blue Owl Technology Finance by 374.2% in the 4th quarter. Rivernorth Capital Management LLC now owns 1,934,726 shares of the company’s stock worth $28,131,000 after purchasing an additional 1,526,695 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ares Management LLC increased its holdings in Blue Owl Technology Finance by 111.5% in the fourth quarter. Ares Management LLC now owns 1,140,168 shares of the company’s stock valued at $16,578,000 after buying an additional 601,104 shares in the last quarter.

Blue Owl Technology Finance Stock Performance

The company has a market cap of $5.48 billion and a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.88.

Blue Owl Technology Finance (NYSE:OTF) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 18th. The company reported $0.30 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.32 by ($0.02). The business had revenue of $320.58 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $326.27 million. Blue Owl Technology Finance had a return on equity of 6.92% and a net margin of 62.89%.

Blue Owl Technology Finance Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 31st will be given a dividend of $0.35 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 31st. This is an increase from Blue Owl Technology Finance’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.05. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 12.0%. Blue Owl Technology Finance’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 80.46%.

Blue Owl Technology Finance declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Wednesday, February 18th that permits the company to buyback $300.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to reacquire up to 5.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are typically a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

About Blue Owl Technology Finance

Blue Owl Technology Finance (NYSE: OTF) is a publicly traded business development company (BDC) sponsored by alternative asset manager Blue Owl. The firm focuses on providing customized debt and structured capital solutions to technology and technology-enabled companies, with an emphasis on growth-stage and middle-market borrowers. As a BDC, its primary activities include originating, structuring and managing private credit investments tailored to the financing needs of fast-growing businesses.

Its investment approach typically centers on direct lending and credit-oriented products, including senior secured loans, unitranche and subordinated debt, as well as selective equity-linked instruments and structured financings.