Wall Street Zen Downgrades Oaktree Specialty Lending (NASDAQ:OCSL) to Sell

Oaktree Specialty Lending (NASDAQ:OCSL) was downgraded by stock analysts at Wall Street Zen from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note issued to investors on Saturday.

Other equities research analysts also recently issued research reports about the company. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on Oaktree Specialty Lending from $13.00 to $12.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 5th. Lucid Cap Mkts upgraded Oaktree Specialty Lending to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, December 15th. Weiss Ratings cut Oaktree Specialty Lending from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a report on Monday, February 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on Oaktree Specialty Lending from $13.50 to $10.50 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, March 13th. Finally, Zacks Research lowered shares of Oaktree Specialty Lending from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Monday, February 9th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Oaktree Specialty Lending presently has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and an average price target of $12.88.

Oaktree Specialty Lending Price Performance

OCSL stock opened at $11.07 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $975.16 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.75 and a beta of 0.52. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a current ratio of 0.16 and a quick ratio of 0.16. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $12.00 and a 200 day simple moving average of $12.86. Oaktree Specialty Lending has a 1 year low of $10.63 and a 1 year high of $15.85.

Oaktree Specialty Lending (NASDAQ:OCSL) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, February 3rd. The credit services provider reported $0.41 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.38 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $74.48 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $75.72 million. Oaktree Specialty Lending had a net margin of 10.58% and a return on equity of 9.75%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.54 earnings per share. Research analysts anticipate that Oaktree Specialty Lending will post 2.06 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Phyllis R. Caldwell purchased 2,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 16th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $10.77 per share, with a total value of $26,925.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 23,500 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $253,095. The trade was a 11.90% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.29% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Oaktree Specialty Lending

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in OCSL. NewEdge Advisors LLC grew its stake in Oaktree Specialty Lending by 87.7% during the fourth quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 27,748 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $354,000 after purchasing an additional 12,961 shares during the period. XTX Topco Ltd lifted its stake in Oaktree Specialty Lending by 1,061.2% in the fourth quarter. XTX Topco Ltd now owns 135,868 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $1,731,000 after buying an additional 124,167 shares during the period. VARCOV Co. bought a new position in shares of Oaktree Specialty Lending during the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,020,000. Toronto Dominion Bank bought a new position in shares of Oaktree Specialty Lending during the 4th quarter worth approximately $2,637,000. Finally, Summit Securities Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Oaktree Specialty Lending during the 4th quarter worth approximately $4,841,000. Institutional investors own 36.79% of the company’s stock.

About Oaktree Specialty Lending

Oaktree Specialty Lending Corporation (NASDAQ: OCSL) is a closed-end, externally managed specialty finance company structured as a business development company (BDC). Launched in 2014, Oaktree Specialty Lending provides customized debt solutions to U.S. middle-market companies, with a focus on senior secured loans, second-lien financings, mezzanine debt and select equity co-investments. The company’s investment strategy centers on floating-rate instruments designed to offer downside protection and income potential in varying interest rate environments.

The firm’s portfolio spans a diverse array of industries, including healthcare, technology, energy, business services and consumer products.