Short Interest in Portman Ridge Finance Co. (NASDAQ:PTMN) Increases By 29.1%

Portman Ridge Finance Co. (NASDAQ:PTMN) saw a significant increase in short interest in June. As of June 15th, there was short interest totalling 22,200 shares, an increase of 29.1% from the May 31st total of 17,200 shares. Approximately 0.2% of the shares of the stock are short sold. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 41,900 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 0.5 days.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have weighed in on the company. Oppenheimer reissued a “market perform” rating and issued a $20.00 price target on shares of Portman Ridge Finance in a report on Friday, March 15th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price objective on shares of Portman Ridge Finance from $20.50 to $20.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, March 18th.

Portman Ridge Finance Trading Up 1.7 %

PTMN traded up $0.33 during trading on Friday, hitting $19.62. 38,905 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 31,222. Portman Ridge Finance has a 1 year low of $16.27 and a 1 year high of $21.12. The firm has a market cap of $182.66 million, a P/E ratio of 11.75 and a beta of 0.93. The company has a current ratio of 1.70, a quick ratio of 1.70 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.37. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $19.53 and a 200 day moving average price of $18.92.

Portman Ridge Finance (NASDAQ:PTMN) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 8th. The company reported $0.67 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.74 by ($0.07). Portman Ridge Finance had a return on equity of 15.21% and a net margin of 21.81%. The company had revenue of $16.53 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $17.48 million. As a group, analysts expect that Portman Ridge Finance will post 2.72 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Portman Ridge Finance Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 31st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, May 21st were paid a dividend of $0.69 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 20th. This represents a $2.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 14.07%. Portman Ridge Finance’s dividend payout ratio is presently 165.27%.

Institutional Trading of Portman Ridge Finance

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Arlington Trust Co LLC acquired a new stake in Portman Ridge Finance during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Cape Investment Advisory Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Portman Ridge Finance during the fourth quarter worth approximately $62,000. Advisors Asset Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Portman Ridge Finance by 6.5% in the third quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 159,568 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,072,000 after buying an additional 9,765 shares during the last quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. bought a new stake in shares of Portman Ridge Finance in the third quarter worth $239,000. Finally, Founders Financial Alliance LLC acquired a new stake in Portman Ridge Finance in the fourth quarter valued at $255,000. 30.14% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Portman Ridge Finance Company Profile

Portman Ridge Finance Corporation is a business development company specializing in investments in unitranche loans (including last out), first lien loans, second lien loans, subordinated debt, equity co-investment, mezzanine, buyout in middle market companies. It also makes acquisitions in businesses complementary to the firm's business.