Short Interest in Portman Ridge Finance Co. (NASDAQ:PTMN) Expands By 22.0%

Portman Ridge Finance Co. (NASDAQ:PTMN) was the recipient of a large growth in short interest in the month of 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. Approximately 1.6% of the company’s shares are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 40,500 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 3.5 days.

Institutional Trading of Portman Ridge Finance

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Virtus ETF Advisers LLC raised its stake in shares of Portman Ridge Finance by 25.3% during the 4th quarter. Virtus ETF Advisers LLC now owns 29,852 shares of the company’s stock worth $488,000 after purchasing an additional 6,031 shares in the last quarter. Confluence Investment Management LLC raised its position in Portman Ridge Finance by 6.1% during the first quarter. Confluence Investment Management LLC now owns 64,165 shares of the company’s stock valued at $921,000 after acquiring an additional 3,693 shares in the last quarter. Founders Financial Alliance LLC lifted its stake in Portman Ridge Finance by 6.3% in the fourth quarter. Founders Financial Alliance LLC now owns 62,217 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,017,000 after acquiring an additional 3,671 shares during the last quarter. Trexquant Investment LP grew its position in Portman Ridge Finance by 50.3% in the fourth quarter. Trexquant Investment LP now owns 65,351 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,068,000 after acquiring an additional 21,859 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Portman Ridge Finance during the 4th quarter worth $1,702,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 30.14% of the company’s stock.

Portman Ridge Finance Stock Down 1.8 %

NASDAQ PTMN traded down $0.25 during trading on Thursday, reaching $13.83. 16,614 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 43,950. The firm has a market capitalization of $127.21 million, a PE ratio of 37.38 and a beta of 1.02. Portman Ridge Finance has a fifty-two week low of $13.77 and a fifty-two week high of $20.84. The company has a current ratio of 3.14, a quick ratio of 3.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $16.47 and its 200-day simple moving average is $17.09.

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

Portman Ridge Finance Cuts Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 24th were paid a $0.47 dividend. This represents a $1.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 13.59%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 24th. Portman Ridge Finance’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -293.75%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

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

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.