Oaktree Specialty Lending Co. (NASDAQ:OCSL) Given Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Oaktree Specialty Lending Co. (NASDAQ:OCSL) has earned a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the six analysts that are covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. The average 1 year target price among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $20.67.

OCSL has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on Oaktree Specialty Lending from $21.00 to $20.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 12th. JMP Securities reaffirmed a “market outperform” rating and set a $21.00 price objective on shares of Oaktree Specialty Lending in a report on Tuesday, March 26th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Oaktree Specialty Lending from $20.00 to $22.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, January 29th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut shares of Oaktree Specialty Lending from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and lowered their price target for the stock from $22.00 to $19.00 in a research note on Friday, February 2nd. Finally, B. Riley cut shares of Oaktree Specialty Lending from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $21.00 price objective for the company. in a research note on Monday, January 8th.

Oaktree Specialty Lending Trading Up 0.2 %

Shares of OCSL stock opened at $19.64 on Wednesday. Oaktree Specialty Lending has a twelve month low of $17.99 and a twelve month high of $21.64. The company has a current ratio of 0.25, a quick ratio of 0.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60. The business’s 50 day moving average is $19.61 and its two-hundred day moving average is $19.95. The company has a market capitalization of $1.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.01 and a beta of 1.06.

Oaktree Specialty Lending (NASDAQ:OCSL) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 1st. The credit services provider reported $0.57 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.61 by ($0.04). Oaktree Specialty Lending had a net margin of 28.81% and a return on equity of 12.22%. The firm had revenue of $97.99 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $99.48 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.61 earnings per share. Equities analysts forecast that Oaktree Specialty Lending will post 2.31 EPS for the current year.

Oaktree Specialty Lending Cuts Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 29th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 15th were given a $0.55 dividend. This represents a $2.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 11.20%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 14th. Oaktree Specialty Lending’s dividend payout ratio is currently 145.70%.

Insider Transactions at Oaktree Specialty Lending

In other Oaktree Specialty Lending news, Director Phyllis R. Caldwell bought 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 12th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $20.07 per share, for a total transaction of $40,140.00. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 11,166 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $224,101.62. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.29% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Oaktree Specialty Lending

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. GraniteShares Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Oaktree Specialty Lending by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. GraniteShares Advisors LLC now owns 71,772 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $1,466,000 after acquiring an additional 532 shares in the last quarter. Samalin Investment Counsel LLC lifted its holdings in Oaktree Specialty Lending by 1.2% in the 3rd quarter. Samalin Investment Counsel LLC now owns 48,514 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $976,000 after purchasing an additional 579 shares in the last quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Oaktree Specialty Lending by 4.2% during the 3rd quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 14,615 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $294,000 after purchasing an additional 584 shares during the last quarter. MRP Capital Investments LLC grew its holdings in shares of Oaktree Specialty Lending by 3.2% during the fourth quarter. MRP Capital Investments LLC now owns 19,733 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $403,000 after buying an additional 616 shares in the last quarter. Finally, AdvisorNet Financial Inc raised its position in shares of Oaktree Specialty Lending by 21.4% in the fourth quarter. AdvisorNet Financial Inc now owns 5,100 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $104,000 after buying an additional 900 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 36.79% of the company’s stock.

About Oaktree Specialty Lending

Oaktree Specialty Lending Corporation is a business development company. The fund specializing in investments in middle market, bridge financing, first and second lien debt financing, unsecured and mezzanine loan, mezzanine debt, senior and junior secured debt, expansions, sponsor-led acquisitions, preferred equity, and management buyouts in small and mid-sized companies.