CION Investment Corporation (NYSE:CION) Sees Significant Decrease in Short Interest

CION Investment Corporation (NYSE:CION) was the target of a large decrease in short interest in December. As of December 31st, there was short interest totaling 270,218 shares, a decrease of 29.2% from the December 15th total of 381,877 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 465,739 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 0.6 days. Approximately 0.5% of the company’s shares are sold short. Approximately 0.5% of the company’s shares are sold short. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 465,739 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 0.6 days.

CION Investment Stock Performance

CION Investment stock traded down $0.18 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $9.47. The stock had a trading volume of 465,400 shares, compared to its average volume of 386,802. The stock has a market capitalization of $493.29 million, a P/E ratio of 18.57 and a beta of 1.07. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $9.80 and its 200-day simple moving average is $9.85. CION Investment has a 1-year low of $8.51 and a 1-year high of $12.71.

CION Investment (NYSE:CION) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 6th. The company reported $0.74 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.35 by $0.39. CION Investment had a return on equity of 12.02% and a net margin of 10.59%.The firm had revenue of $78.71 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $52.41 million. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that CION Investment will post 1.78 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

CION Investment Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a monthly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 27th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 13th will be paid a $0.10 dividend. This represents a c) annualized dividend and a yield of 12.7%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 13th. CION Investment’s payout ratio is presently 235.29%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the company. Zacks Research cut CION Investment from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, January 12th. Wall Street Zen upgraded CION Investment from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Saturday. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of CION Investment in a report on Monday, December 29th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and an average price target of $8.50.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On CION Investment

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. SeaCrest Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in CION Investment by 14.0% during the second quarter. SeaCrest Wealth Management LLC now owns 29,102 shares of the company’s stock worth $279,000 after acquiring an additional 3,564 shares in the last quarter. Beacon Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of CION Investment by 7.7% during the 2nd quarter. Beacon Capital Management LLC now owns 33,404 shares of the company’s stock worth $320,000 after purchasing an additional 2,374 shares in the last quarter. Symmetry Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of CION Investment by 117.6% during the 2nd quarter. Symmetry Partners LLC now owns 40,376 shares of the company’s stock worth $386,000 after purchasing an additional 21,817 shares in the last quarter. Berger Financial Group Inc boosted its holdings in shares of CION Investment by 27.6% in the 2nd quarter. Berger Financial Group Inc now owns 487,404 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,664,000 after buying an additional 105,478 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wealthcare Advisory Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of CION Investment by 40.8% in the second quarter. Wealthcare Advisory Partners LLC now owns 28,979 shares of the company’s stock valued at $277,000 after buying an additional 8,402 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 32.01% of the company’s stock.

CION Investment Company Profile

CION Investment Corporation is a closed?end, non?diversified management investment company organized as a business development company under the Investment Company Act of 1940. Externally managed by CION Investment Management, LLC, the firm specializes in providing flexible capital solutions to U.S. and Canadian middle?market companies. By combining debt and equity financing, CION seeks to support growth, acquisitions, recapitalizations and other strategic initiatives for its portfolio companies.

The company’s investment strategy centers on senior secured loans, subordinated debt and private equity interests.