Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending (NYSE:NCDL) Issues Quarterly Earnings Results, Beats Expectations By $0.01 EPS

Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending (NYSE:NCDL) issued its earnings results on Thursday. The company reported $0.44 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.43 by $0.01, Zacks reports. The company had revenue of $26.36 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $49.60 million. Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending had a net margin of 31.57% and a return on equity of 10.41%.

Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:NCDL traded down $0.48 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $12.88. 565,408 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 289,028. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $13.60 and its 200-day moving average price is $14.35. The firm has a market cap of $636.14 million, a PE ratio of 9.83 and a beta of 0.40. Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending has a 52 week low of $12.76 and a 52 week high of $17.72. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25, a current ratio of 1.65 and a quick ratio of 1.65.

Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending Cuts Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 28th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 31st will be given a dividend of $0.36 per share. This represents a $1.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 11.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 31st. Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending’s payout ratio is presently 117.65%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Virtu Financial LLC raised its position in shares of Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending by 181.2% during the 4th quarter. Virtu Financial LLC now owns 41,725 shares of the company’s stock valued at $557,000 after purchasing an additional 26,885 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. boosted its holdings in Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending by 2,179.1% in the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 742,296 shares of the company’s stock worth $9,902,000 after buying an additional 709,727 shares during the period. NewEdge Advisors LLC increased its stake in Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending by 31.2% in the 4th quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 6,073 shares of the company’s stock worth $81,000 after buying an additional 1,443 shares in the last quarter. VARCOV Co. bought a new stake in Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending during the fourth quarter valued at about $371,000. Finally, Almitas Capital LLC bought a new stake in Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending during the fourth quarter valued at about $936,000.

Analyst Ratings Changes

NCDL has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending from $15.00 to $14.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, November 5th. Zacks Research raised shares of Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, January 9th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their price objective on shares of Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending from $16.00 to $15.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised shares of Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday, February 22nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $15.50.

Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.36/share (ex-div March 31, payable Apr 28), implying a ~10.8% yield — supports income-focused investor demand. Dividend Announcement
• Positive Sentiment: Company/press releases and some coverage report net investment income/EPS of $0.44 for Q4, modestly beating consensus and highlighting ongoing income generation and a reported ROE (~11%). Q4 Beat Coverage
• Neutral Sentiment: Management hosted an earnings call with a published transcript and presentation; these provide details on portfolio performance, NAV dynamics and outlook — useful for assessing credit quality and distribution sustainability. Earnings Highlights Call Transcript
• Negative Sentiment: Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered its price target from $16 to $15 and set a “market perform” rating — a downgrade that can weigh on sentiment and short-term flow. Analyst Note
• Negative Sentiment: Some market reports show mixed/contradictory Q4 metrics (one source reported EPS of $0.32 and revenue well below expectations at ~$26.4M versus ~$49.6M), raising questions on reporting differences and near-term earnings clarity. That uncertainty likely contributed to the sell-off. Earnings/Metrics Report

Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending Company Profile

Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending (NYSE:NCDL) is a closed-end management investment company that seeks to provide shareholders with attractive risk-adjusted returns through a diversified portfolio of direct lending instruments. Established in early 2022, NCDL focuses on privately negotiated debt investments in middle-market companies, primarily within the United States. The fund offers investors access to a segment of the credit markets that has historically been less correlated with public debt markets, aiming to capture yield premiums associated with private lending.

The fund’s investment strategy centers on senior secured loans, unitranche financings and selectively structured mezzanine debt.