Portman Ridge Finance Co. (NASDAQ:PTMN) Sees Significant Increase in Short Interest

Portman Ridge Finance Co. (NASDAQ:PTMN) saw a significant growth in short interest in March. As of March 15th, there was short interest totalling 143,700 shares, a growth of 22.0% from the February 28th total of 117,800 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 40,500 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 3.5 days. Approximately 1.6% of the company’s shares are short sold.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their price objective on Portman Ridge Finance from $18.00 to $16.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, March 19th.

Portman Ridge Finance Stock Down 0.4 %

Shares of Portman Ridge Finance stock traded down $0.06 on Wednesday, hitting $14.05. The company had a trading volume of 9,704 shares, compared to its average volume of 43,923. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $16.52 and a 200-day moving average of $17.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41, a current ratio of 3.14 and a quick ratio of 3.14. Portman Ridge Finance has a twelve month low of $14.00 and a twelve month high of $20.84. The firm has a market capitalization of $129.23 million, a P/E ratio of 37.97 and a beta of 1.02.

Portman Ridge Finance (NASDAQ:PTMN) last released its earnings results on Thursday, March 13th. The company reported $0.60 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.68 by ($0.08). The firm had revenue of $14.40 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $15.14 million. Portman Ridge Finance had a return on equity of 14.68% and a net margin of 5.47%. Research analysts predict that Portman Ridge Finance will post 2.64 earnings per share for the current year.

Portman Ridge Finance Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 24th were paid a $0.47 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 24th. This represents a $1.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 13.38%. Portman Ridge Finance’s payout ratio is currently -293.75%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Portman Ridge Finance

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Bulldog Investors LLP increased its position in shares of Portman Ridge Finance by 155.0% in the fourth quarter. Bulldog Investors LLP now owns 216,546 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,539,000 after acquiring an additional 131,630 shares during the last quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP increased its position in shares of Portman Ridge Finance by 39.5% during the 4th quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP now owns 178,200 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,912,000 after purchasing an additional 50,500 shares during the last quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP increased its position in shares of Portman Ridge Finance by 25.3% during the 4th quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP now owns 106,165 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,735,000 after purchasing an additional 21,425 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Portman Ridge Finance during the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,702,000. Finally, Trexquant Investment LP boosted its holdings in shares of Portman Ridge Finance by 50.3% in the 4th quarter. Trexquant Investment LP now owns 65,351 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,068,000 after buying an additional 21,859 shares during the last quarter. 30.14% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Portman Ridge Finance

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.