WhiteHorse Finance (NASDAQ:WHF) Upgraded at B. Riley Financial

B. Riley Financial upgraded shares of WhiteHorse Finance (NASDAQ:WHF) from a neutral rating to a buy rating in a research report sent to investors on Tuesday, MarketBeat.com reports. The brokerage currently has $9.00 price target on the investment management company’s stock, up from their previous price target of $8.00.

A number of other equities research analysts also recently issued reports on WHF. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on WhiteHorse Finance from $6.50 to $7.50 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of WhiteHorse Finance from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research note on Monday, November 2nd. Finally, Raymond James Financial upgraded WhiteHorse Finance from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $9.00 target price for the company in a research report on Thursday, October 22nd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $8.50.

WhiteHorse Finance Trading Down 0.7%

Shares of NASDAQ:WHF opened at $8.31 on Tuesday. The company’s 50 day moving average is $7.49 and its two-hundred day moving average is $7.06. The company has a market cap of $178.50 million, a PE ratio of 7.49 and a beta of 0.37. WhiteHorse Finance has a 52 week low of $6.07 and a 52 week high of $8.53. The company has a current ratio of 1.50, a quick ratio of 1.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.28.

WhiteHorse Finance (NASDAQ:WHF) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, November 9th. The investment management company reported $0.22 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.25 by ($0.03). The company had revenue of $14.83 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $15.19 million. WhiteHorse Finance had a net margin of 39.44% and a return on equity of 8.53%. Equities analysts predict that WhiteHorse Finance will post 0.91 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

WhiteHorse Finance Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 6th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 21st will be issued a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 12.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 21st. WhiteHorse Finance’s payout ratio is currently 90.09%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On WhiteHorse Finance

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Ritholtz Wealth Management bought a new position in WhiteHorse Finance during the 3rd quarter worth $123,000. Covestor Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of WhiteHorse Finance during the third quarter valued at about $28,000. Arlington Capital Management INC acquired a new position in shares of WhiteHorse Finance during the third quarter worth $185,000. Bank of America Corp DE acquired a new position in shares of WhiteHorse Finance in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $1,240,000. Finally, Legal & General Group Plc bought a new position in shares of WhiteHorse Finance during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $1,172,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 13.20% of the company’s stock.

WhiteHorse Finance Company Profile

WhiteHorse Finance, Inc. is a business development company that provides debt financing and makes other investments in lower middle-market companies, primarily in the United States. It is externally managed by an investment adviser affiliated with H.I.G. Capital, a global alternative investment firm. The company’s investments include senior secured loans, unitranche and second-lien loans, and, in some cases, subordinated debt or equity interests. Its financing can support business growth, acquisitions, recapitalizations, and other corporate needs.