Portman Ridge Finance Co. (NASDAQ:PTMN) Sees Large Growth in Short Interest

Portman Ridge Finance Co. (NASDAQ:PTMN) was the recipient of a significant growth in short interest during the month of February. As of February 28th, there was short interest totalling 117,800 shares, a growth of 31.2% from the February 13th total of 89,800 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 40,500 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 2.9 days. Approximately 1.3% of the shares of the company are short sold.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Portman Ridge Finance

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Bulldog Investors LLP boosted its position in Portman Ridge Finance by 155.0% during the fourth quarter. Bulldog Investors LLP now owns 216,546 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,539,000 after purchasing an additional 131,630 shares in the last quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP boosted its position in Portman Ridge Finance by 39.5% during the fourth 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 in the last quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP raised its holdings in shares of Portman Ridge Finance by 25.3% during the fourth quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP now owns 106,165 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,735,000 after acquiring an additional 21,425 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Portman Ridge Finance during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,702,000. Finally, Trexquant Investment LP raised its holdings in shares of Portman Ridge Finance by 50.3% during the fourth quarter. Trexquant Investment LP now owns 65,351 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,068,000 after acquiring an additional 21,859 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 30.14% of the company’s stock.

Portman Ridge Finance Stock Down 4.0 %

Shares of PTMN opened at $15.79 on Monday. Portman Ridge Finance has a 52 week low of $15.16 and a 52 week high of $20.84. The company has a quick ratio of 3.14, a current ratio of 3.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41. The company has a market capitalization of $145.47 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 42.68 and a beta of 1.02. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $16.85 and its 200-day moving average price is $17.41.

Portman Ridge Finance (NASDAQ:PTMN) last issued its quarterly 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 business had revenue of $14.40 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $15.14 million. Portman Ridge Finance had a return on equity of 14.68% and a net margin of 5.47%. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Portman Ridge Finance will post 2.64 EPS for the current year.

Portman Ridge Finance Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 24th will be given a dividend of $0.47 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 24th. This represents a $1.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 11.91%. Portman Ridge Finance’s dividend payout ratio is currently -431.25%.

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.