Portman Ridge Finance Co. (NASDAQ:PTMN) Short Interest Up 30.3% in September

Portman Ridge Finance Co. (NASDAQ:PTMN) saw a large increase in short interest during the month of September. As of September 15th, there was short interest totalling 41,700 shares, an increase of 30.3% from the August 31st total of 32,000 shares. Approximately 0.5% of the company’s stock are short sold. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 42,400 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 1.0 days.

Portman Ridge Finance Stock Performance

PTMN traded up $0.01 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $18.17. 39,741 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 40,839. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $18.83 and a 200-day simple moving average of $19.20. Portman Ridge Finance has a 12 month low of $16.27 and a 12 month high of $20.84. The stock has a market cap of $169.09 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.88 and a beta of 1.01. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.44, a current ratio of 4.40 and a quick ratio of 4.40.

Portman Ridge Finance (NASDAQ:PTMN) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, August 8th. The company reported $0.70 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.69 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $16.34 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.68 million. Portman Ridge Finance had a net margin of 18.14% and a return on equity of 14.86%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.83 EPS. Analysts anticipate that Portman Ridge Finance will post 2.74 earnings per share for the current year.

Portman Ridge Finance Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 30th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 22nd were given a $0.69 dividend. This represents a $2.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 15.19%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, August 22nd. Portman Ridge Finance’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 165.27%.

Institutional Trading of Portman Ridge Finance

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. International Assets Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in Portman Ridge Finance in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $59,000. Ritholtz Wealth Management acquired a new position in Portman Ridge Finance in the second quarter worth $272,000. Redhawk Wealth Advisors Inc. bought a new position in shares of Portman Ridge Finance in the second quarter worth about $787,000. Founders Financial Alliance LLC increased its stake in shares of Portman Ridge Finance by 74.2% in the 2nd quarter. Founders Financial Alliance LLC now owns 49,954 shares of the company’s stock valued at $980,000 after buying an additional 21,273 shares during the period. Finally, Confluence Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in Portman Ridge Finance in the first quarter worth about $1,112,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 30.14% of the company’s stock.

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.