Sound Point Meridian Capital, Inc. (NYSE:SPMC) Short Interest Up 204.4% in February

Sound Point Meridian Capital, Inc. (NYSE:SPMC) was the target of a large increase in short interest in February. As of February 13th, there was short interest totaling 33,466 shares, an increase of 204.4% from the January 29th total of 10,995 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 47,213 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 0.7 days. Approximately 0.2% of the shares of the stock are short sold. Approximately 0.2% of the shares of the stock are short sold. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 47,213 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 0.7 days.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on SPMC shares. iA Financial set a $18.50 target price on shares of Sound Point Meridian Capital in a report on Thursday, November 13th. Oppenheimer set a $20.00 price objective on shares of Sound Point Meridian Capital in a research report on Monday, December 1st. Compass Point set a $12.00 price target on shares of Sound Point Meridian Capital in a research report on Wednesday, February 11th. Alliance Global Partners restated a “buy” rating on shares of Sound Point Meridian Capital in a report on Wednesday, February 11th. Finally, B. Riley Financial reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $12.00 price objective (down from $16.00) on shares of Sound Point Meridian Capital in a research report on Thursday, February 12th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $16.50.

Sound Point Meridian Capital Trading Up 8.1%

SPMC traded up $0.75 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $10.08. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 100,944 shares, compared to its average volume of 42,996. Sound Point Meridian Capital has a 1 year low of $9.10 and a 1 year high of $22.30. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $12.97 and its 200-day moving average is $15.30. The firm has a market capitalization of $206.65 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -2.86 and a beta of 0.32.

Sound Point Meridian Capital (NYSE:SPMC) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 11th. The company reported $0.44 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.55 by ($0.11). The firm had revenue of $17.95 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $20.45 million.

Sound Point Meridian Capital Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a monthly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.20 per share. This represents a c) dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 23.8%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 15th. Sound Point Meridian Capital’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently -84.99%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Matthew E. Forstenhausler acquired 4,118 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 18th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $13.60 per share, with a total value of $56,004.80. Following the acquisition, the director owned 6,318 shares in the company, valued at approximately $85,924.80. This represents a 187.18% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, major shareholder Guaranty Ltd Assured sold 4,562 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $14.31, for a total transaction of $65,282.22. Following the transaction, the insider owned 5,269,690 shares in the company, valued at $75,409,263.90. The trade was a 0.09% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last ninety days, insiders have bought 11,480 shares of company stock valued at $150,127 and have sold 10,701 shares valued at $154,990. Insiders own 0.89% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Sound Point Meridian Capital

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in SPMC. Everest Management Corp. bought a new position in Sound Point Meridian Capital during the second quarter valued at approximately $1,303,000. Marshall Wace LLP boosted its stake in shares of Sound Point Meridian Capital by 35.4% in the 2nd quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 77,152 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,379,000 after buying an additional 20,163 shares during the last quarter. Kim LLC bought a new stake in shares of Sound Point Meridian Capital in the second quarter worth $192,821,000. Citadel Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Sound Point Meridian Capital during the third quarter valued at $267,000. Finally, Thomas J. Herzfeld Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in Sound Point Meridian Capital during the fourth quarter valued at $189,000.

About Sound Point Meridian Capital

Sound Point Meridian Capital Inc is an externally managed, non-diversified closed-end management investment company. Its investment objective is to generate high current income, with a secondary objective to generate capital appreciation, by investing primarily in third-party collateralized loan obligation equity and mezzanine tranches. Sound Point Meridian Capital Inc is based in NEW YORK.