Barings BDC, Inc. (NYSE:BBDC) Short Interest Down 7.5% in December

Barings BDC, Inc. (NYSE:BBDC) saw a large decrease in short interest in the month of December. As of December 31st, there was short interest totalling 573,800 shares, a decrease of 7.5% from the December 15th total of 620,300 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 426,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 1.3 days.

Barings BDC Stock Down 0.2 %

Shares of NYSE:BBDC traded down $0.02 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $9.71. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 302,207 shares, compared to its average volume of 402,004. The company has a quick ratio of 0.11, a current ratio of 0.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $9.74 and a 200-day moving average of $9.83. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.99 and a beta of 0.68. Barings BDC has a 12-month low of $8.67 and a 12-month high of $10.38.

Barings BDC (NYSE:BBDC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 6th. The company reported $0.29 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.30 by ($0.01). Barings BDC had a return on equity of 11.24% and a net margin of 39.59%. The business had revenue of $70.85 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $70.48 million. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.31 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that Barings BDC will post 1.24 earnings per share for the current year.

Barings BDC Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, December 11th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, December 4th were paid a dividend of $0.26 per share. This represents a $1.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 10.72%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, December 4th. Barings BDC’s payout ratio is 96.30%.

Insider Activity at Barings BDC

In other Barings BDC news, Director Stephen R. Byers acquired 8,485 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, December 13th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $9.73 per share, for a total transaction of $82,559.05. Following the transaction, the director now owns 50,001 shares in the company, valued at $486,509.73. This represents a 20.44 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Michael James O’connor sold 29,424 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $9.70, for a total value of $285,412.80. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders purchased 14,048 shares of company stock worth $136,772 in the last ninety days. 0.45% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Barings BDC

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its stake in shares of Barings BDC by 393.7% in the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 2,582 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 2,059 shares in the last quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. purchased a new position in Barings BDC in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $26,000. nVerses Capital LLC lifted its position in Barings BDC by 50.0% in the 3rd quarter. nVerses Capital LLC now owns 3,300 shares of the company’s stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 1,100 shares in the last quarter. MML Investors Services LLC purchased a new stake in Barings BDC during the 3rd quarter valued at $99,000. Finally, Centaurus Financial Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Barings BDC in the 3rd quarter worth $99,000. 44.09% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.