Barings BDC, Inc. (NYSE:BBDC) Short Interest Down 17.6% in February

Barings BDC, Inc. (NYSE:BBDC) was the recipient of a large drop in short interest during the month of February. As of February 28th, there was short interest totalling 567,000 shares, a drop of 17.6% from the February 13th total of 688,500 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 536,900 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 1.1 days. Currently, 0.5% of the company’s shares are sold short.

Institutional Trading of Barings BDC

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of BBDC. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC raised its position in shares of Barings BDC by 10.9% in the 4th quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 81,649 shares of the company’s stock worth $781,000 after acquiring an additional 8,016 shares in the last quarter. Ameriflex Group Inc. purchased a new stake in Barings BDC in the fourth quarter worth $80,000. Kingstone Capital Partners Texas LLC purchased a new stake in Barings BDC in the fourth quarter worth $135,000. ProShare Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Barings BDC by 15.1% in the fourth quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 17,809 shares of the company’s stock worth $170,000 after purchasing an additional 2,333 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Millennium Management LLC lifted its position in Barings BDC by 253.5% during the fourth quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 37,364 shares of the company’s stock valued at $358,000 after buying an additional 26,794 shares during the period. 44.09% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Barings BDC Trading Up 1.4 %

Shares of Barings BDC stock traded up $0.13 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $9.52. 511,475 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 437,176. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $9.93 and a 200-day moving average of $9.84. Barings BDC has a 12 month low of $8.95 and a 12 month high of $10.85. The company has a market cap of $1.00 billion, a PE ratio of 9.16 and a beta of 0.66. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37, a quick ratio of 0.14 and a current ratio of 0.14.

Barings BDC (NYSE:BBDC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 20th. The company reported $0.28 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.29 by ($0.01). Barings BDC had a net margin of 38.54% and a return on equity of 10.94%. The company had revenue of $70.63 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $69.35 million. As a group, equities analysts expect that Barings BDC will post 1.13 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Barings BDC Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Investors of record on Wednesday, March 5th were paid a $0.26 dividend. This represents a $1.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 10.92%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 5th. Barings BDC’s payout ratio is currently 100.00%.

About Barings BDC

Barings BDC, Inc is a publicly traded, externally managed investment company that has elected to be treated as a business development company under the Investment Company Act of 1940. It seeks to invest primarily in senior secured loans, first lien debt, unitranche, second lien debt, subordinated debt, equity co-investments and senior secured private debt investments in private middle-market companies that operate across a wide range of industries.