BlackRock TCP Capital Corp. (NASDAQ:TCPC) Sees Large Growth in Short Interest

BlackRock TCP Capital Corp. (NASDAQ:TCPC) was the target of a large growth in short interest during the month of March. As of March 15th, there was short interest totalling 1,590,000 shares, a growth of 57.4% from the February 28th total of 1,010,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 647,500 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 2.5 days. Approximately 1.9% of the shares of the company are sold short.

Insider Activity at BlackRock TCP Capital

In related news, CEO Philip M. Tseng bought 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 21st. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $7.74 per share, for a total transaction of $77,400.00. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer now directly owns 38,587 shares in the company, valued at $298,663.38. This trade represents a 34.98 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, COO Patrick Wolfe bought 6,100 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 14th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $8.12 per share, for a total transaction of $49,532.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 8,003 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $64,984.36. This represents a 320.55 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have bought 18,500 shares of company stock worth $146,444. 0.16% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On BlackRock TCP Capital

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd grew its position in shares of BlackRock TCP Capital by 91.1% in the 3rd quarter. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd now owns 29,877 shares of the investment management company’s stock valued at $248,000 after acquiring an additional 14,245 shares during the period. D.A. Davidson & CO. increased its holdings in shares of BlackRock TCP Capital by 3.7% during the 3rd quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 485,458 shares of the investment management company’s stock worth $4,024,000 after acquiring an additional 17,218 shares during the last quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP acquired a new stake in BlackRock TCP Capital during the 3rd quarter valued at $79,000. CreativeOne Wealth LLC boosted its position in BlackRock TCP Capital by 13.8% during the third quarter. CreativeOne Wealth LLC now owns 67,794 shares of the investment management company’s stock worth $562,000 after purchasing an additional 8,238 shares during the period. Finally, Paloma Partners Management Co acquired a new position in shares of BlackRock TCP Capital in the third quarter valued at $608,000.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on TCPC. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their target price on shares of BlackRock TCP Capital from $9.00 to $8.50 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 28th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on shares of BlackRock TCP Capital from $8.00 to $7.50 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 28th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded BlackRock TCP Capital from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and four have assigned a hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, BlackRock TCP Capital has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $8.67.

BlackRock TCP Capital Trading Down 0.6 %

Shares of TCPC stock traded down $0.05 on Monday, hitting $7.95. The stock had a trading volume of 329,040 shares, compared to its average volume of 547,521. The firm has a market cap of $675.94 million, a P/E ratio of -15.87 and a beta of 1.55. BlackRock TCP Capital has a twelve month low of $7.67 and a twelve month high of $11.52. The company has a current ratio of 39.37, a quick ratio of 39.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.34. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $8.69 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $8.66.

BlackRock TCP Capital Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 17th will be paid a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 17th. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 12.59%. BlackRock TCP Capital’s dividend payout ratio is currently -133.33%.

About BlackRock TCP Capital

BlackRock TCP Capital Corp. is a business development company specializing in direct equity and debt investments in middle-market, small businesses, debt securities, senior secured loans, junior loans, originated loans, mezzanine, senior debt instruments, bonds, and secondary-market investments. It typically invests in communication services, public relations services, television, wireless telecommunication services, apparel, textile mills, restaurants, retailing, energy, oil and gas extraction, Patent owners and Lessors, Federal and Federally- Sponsored Credit agencies, insurance, hospital and healthcare centers, Biotechnology, engineering services, heavy electrical equipment, tax accounting, scientific and related consulting services, charter freight air transportation, Information technology consulting, application hosting services, software diagram and design, computer aided design, communication equipment, electronics manufacturing equipment, computer components, chemicals.