Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending (NYSE:NCDL) Upgraded at Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending (NYSE:NCDL) from a sell rating to a hold rating in a research report released on Sunday.

A number of other research analysts also recently weighed in on the company. Zacks Research raised Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, January 9th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending from $15.00 to $14.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, November 5th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price objective on shares of Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending from $17.00 to $16.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, November 5th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $15.75.

Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending Price Performance

NYSE NCDL opened at $13.27 on Friday. Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending has a fifty-two week low of $12.95 and a fifty-two week high of $18.01. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $13.66 and its two-hundred day moving average is $14.38. The firm has a market cap of $655.26 million, a P/E ratio of 8.67 and a beta of 0.40. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25, a current ratio of 1.65 and a quick ratio of 1.65.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of NCDL. Invesco Ltd. boosted its holdings in Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending by 2,179.1% in the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 742,296 shares of the company’s stock valued at $9,902,000 after purchasing an additional 709,727 shares during the period. Closed End Fund Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending during the fourth quarter valued at about $7,374,000. Ares Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending by 188.3% in the fourth quarter. Ares Management LLC now owns 360,830 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,813,000 after buying an additional 235,674 shares during the period. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. grew its position in Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending by 213.1% during the fourth quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 339,978 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,535,000 after buying an additional 231,400 shares in the last quarter. Finally, UBS Group AG grew its position in Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending by 40.0% during the fourth quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 689,050 shares of the company’s stock worth $9,192,000 after buying an additional 196,956 shares in the last quarter.

About Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending

Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending (NYSE:NCDL) is a closed-end management investment company that seeks to provide shareholders with attractive risk-adjusted returns through a diversified portfolio of direct lending instruments. Established in early 2022, NCDL focuses on privately negotiated debt investments in middle-market companies, primarily within the United States. The fund offers investors access to a segment of the credit markets that has historically been less correlated with public debt markets, aiming to capture yield premiums associated with private lending.

The fund’s investment strategy centers on senior secured loans, unitranche financings and selectively structured mezzanine debt.