Saratoga Investment (NYSE:SAR) Stock Rating Upgraded by StockNews.com

Saratoga Investment (NYSE:SAR) was upgraded by equities research analysts at StockNews.com from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report issued on Friday.

Other analysts have also issued reports about the company. Compass Point boosted their price objective on Saratoga Investment from $24.75 to $26.25 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, October 11th. B. Riley restated a “neutral” rating and set a $25.00 target price on shares of Saratoga Investment in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. Oppenheimer increased their target price on Saratoga Investment from $23.00 to $25.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. Finally, LADENBURG THALM/SH SH downgraded Saratoga Investment from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $25.42.

Saratoga Investment Trading Down 1.2 %

SAR traded down $0.30 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $24.20. 123,381 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 63,197. The firm has a market capitalization of $333.98 million, a P/E ratio of 15.82 and a beta of 1.33. Saratoga Investment has a 1-year low of $21.56 and a 1-year high of $26.49. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $24.47 and its 200-day moving average price is $23.67. The company has a quick ratio of 0.22, a current ratio of 0.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14.

Saratoga Investment (NYSE:SAR) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 8th. The financial services provider reported $0.90 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.82 by $0.08. Saratoga Investment had a return on equity of 15.88% and a net margin of 13.64%. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Saratoga Investment will post 3.93 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Saratoga Investment

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. bought a new stake in Saratoga Investment in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $116,000. Wedbush Securities Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Saratoga Investment by 12.2% during the 2nd quarter. Wedbush Securities Inc. now owns 9,900 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $225,000 after buying an additional 1,075 shares in the last quarter. B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Saratoga Investment by 8.4% during the 2nd quarter. B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 9,885 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $225,000 after buying an additional 770 shares in the last quarter. PVG Asset Management Corp purchased a new position in shares of Saratoga Investment during the 3rd quarter valued at $236,000. Finally, Commonwealth Equity Services LLC lifted its stake in Saratoga Investment by 8.2% in the 2nd quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 22,224 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $505,000 after purchasing an additional 1,677 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 19.09% of the company’s stock.

Saratoga Investment Company Profile

Saratoga Investment Corp. is a business development company specializing in leveraged and management buyouts, acquisition financings, growth financings, recapitalization, debt refinancing, and transitional financing transactions at the lower end of middle market companies. It structures its investments as debt and equity by investing through first and second lien loans, mezzanine debt, co-investments, select high yield bonds, senior secured bonds, unsecured bonds, and preferred and common equity.