Van ECK Associates Corp Purchases 68,320 Shares of SLR Investment Corp. (NASDAQ:SLRC)

Van ECK Associates Corp boosted its position in SLR Investment Corp. (NASDAQ:SLRC) by 8.0% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 918,196 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 68,320 shares during the period. Van ECK Associates Corp owned 1.68% of SLR Investment worth $14,094,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Natixis Advisors L.P. boosted its holdings in shares of SLR Investment by 7.1% during the fourth quarter. Natixis Advisors L.P. now owns 17,418 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $261,000 after purchasing an additional 1,154 shares during the period. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC grew its position in shares of SLR Investment by 4.0% in the 4th quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 50,839 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $764,000 after buying an additional 1,969 shares during the last quarter. Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC increased its stake in shares of SLR Investment by 6.7% during the fourth quarter. Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC now owns 34,513 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $524,000 after buying an additional 2,156 shares during the period. Sunbelt Securities Inc. raised its holdings in shares of SLR Investment by 2.8% during the third quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. now owns 84,588 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,302,000 after acquiring an additional 2,320 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Triad Investment Management lifted its stake in SLR Investment by 2.7% in the first quarter. Triad Investment Management now owns 93,929 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,442,000 after acquiring an additional 2,501 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 35.32% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

SLRC has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. B. Riley reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $17.00 price objective (up from $16.00) on shares of SLR Investment in a research report on Friday, May 10th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price target on shares of SLR Investment from $15.50 to $16.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 23rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and five have given a hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $14.88.

Insider Activity at SLR Investment

In related news, Director Andrea Colvin Roberts bought 25,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 14th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $15.98 per share, with a total value of $399,500.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 25,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $399,500. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. 8.20% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

SLR Investment Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:SLRC remained flat at $16.12 during midday trading on Friday. 41,498 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 168,241. The company has a quick ratio of 1.05, a current ratio of 1.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17. The business has a 50-day moving average of $16.08 and a 200 day moving average of $15.46. The stock has a market capitalization of $879.51 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.06 and a beta of 1.13. SLR Investment Corp. has a 12-month low of $13.93 and a 12-month high of $16.77.

SLR Investment (NASDAQ:SLRC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 8th. The financial services provider reported $0.44 EPS for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.44. SLR Investment had a net margin of 41.66% and a return on equity of 9.51%. The business had revenue of $58.10 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $58.96 million. On average, research analysts predict that SLR Investment Corp. will post 1.74 EPS for the current year.

SLR Investment Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 27th. Investors of record on Thursday, June 13th were given a dividend of $0.41 per share. This represents a $1.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 10.17%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, June 13th. SLR Investment’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 92.13%.

SLR Investment Company Profile

SLR Investment Corp. is a business development company specializing in secured debt (first lien unitranche and second lien), subordinated (unsecured) debt, minority equity, leveraged buyouts, acquisitions, recapitalizations, general refinancing, growth capital and strategic income-oriented control equity investments in leveraged middle market companies.