Saratoga Investment (NYSE:SAR) Downgraded by StockNews.com

StockNews.com lowered shares of Saratoga Investment (NYSE:SAR – Get Rating) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research note released on Tuesday morning.

SAR has been the topic of several other reports. Janney Montgomery Scott assumed coverage on shares of Saratoga Investment in a research report on Monday, April 24th. They set a buy rating and a $27.00 price objective on the stock. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH dropped their price objective on shares of Saratoga Investment from $28.00 to $27.00 in a research note on Thursday, May 4th.

Saratoga Investment Stock Down 0.9 %

SAR opened at $26.92 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.15, a quick ratio of 0.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09. Saratoga Investment has a 1-year low of $20.16 and a 1-year high of $28.00. The company has a market capitalization of $319.27 million, a PE ratio of 12.88 and a beta of 1.37. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $24.57 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $25.68.

Saratoga Investment Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 29th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 13th will be issued a $0.70 dividend. This is an increase from Saratoga Investment’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.69. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 10.40%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 12th. Saratoga Investment’s dividend payout ratio is 132.06%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Christian L. Oberbeck acquired 2,000 shares of Saratoga Investment stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 4th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $23.81 per share, for a total transaction of $47,620.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 689,775 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $16,423,542.75. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 14.00% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Saratoga Investment

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Fairfield Bush & CO. purchased a new position in Saratoga Investment during the first quarter worth about $27,000. Raymond James & Associates raised its holdings in Saratoga Investment by 9.4% during the first quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 81,686 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,227,000 after purchasing an additional 7,043 shares in the last quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Saratoga Investment in the 1st quarter valued at $239,000. Lazard Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in Saratoga Investment in the 1st quarter valued at $38,000. Finally, Northern Trust Corp increased its stake in Saratoga Investment by 11.0% in the 1st quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 13,876 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $378,000 after buying an additional 1,378 shares during the period. 19.45% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Saratoga Investment Company Profile

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Saratoga Investment Corp. (NYSE: SAR) is a publicly traded business development company (BDC) that provides customized financing solutions for middle market companies located in the United States. Saratoga’s senior investment professionals have over 200 years of combined experience investing in more than $4 billion in middle market businesses.