Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending (NYSE:NCDL) Posts Quarterly Earnings Results

Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending (NYSE:NCDL) issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday. The company reported $0.41 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.39 by $0.02, Zacks reports. Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending had a return on equity of 9.53% and a net margin of 24.44%.The company had revenue of $11.14 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $46.72 million.

Here are the key takeaways from Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending’s conference call:

• Net investment income of $0.41 per share covered the $0.36 base dividend, and the board declared a third-quarter distribution of $0.38 per share, including a $0.02 supplemental payment.
• NAV declined 1.8% to $17.19 per share, driven by realized and unrealized losses tied primarily to amendments involving two underperforming investments. Four additional companies were placed on non-accrual, bringing non-accruals to 2.7% of investments at cost and 1.5% at fair value.
• NCDL’s gross originations fell sharply to $12.1 million from $82.9 million in the prior quarter as management managed leverage and private-equity deal activity slowed, although executives said transaction activity improved in June and July.
• NCDL launched a joint venture with an institutional investor, initially contributing a $150 million portfolio and targeting approximately $300 million of assets within 12 months. Management expects the vehicle’s leverage and senior-loan strategy to generate accretive returns and expand deployment capacity.
• The portfolio remained highly diversified across 244 companies, with 89.6% allocated to first-lien loans and only 2.4% exposure to software, while leverage was 1.29x gross and interest coverage was 2.5x.

Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending Stock Up 2.6%

NCDL stock traded up $0.33 on Friday, reaching $12.86. 187,958 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 193,508. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $12.60 and a 200-day moving average of $13.18. Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending has a twelve month low of $11.97 and a twelve month high of $16.37. The firm has a market cap of $635.16 million, a PE ratio of 13.54 and a beta of 0.51.

Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 27th. Investors of record on Wednesday, September 30th will be paid a $0.36 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, September 30th. This represents a $1.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 11.2%. Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending’s payout ratio is 120.00%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on NCDL. UBS Group decreased their target price on Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending from $15.50 to $14.75 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, May 18th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and cut their price target for the stock from $13.00 to $12.00 in a research report on Friday, June 12th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, July 25th. Finally, Zacks Research raised Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 21st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $14.44.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Treasurer Shaul Vichness purchased 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 14th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $13.20 per share, for a total transaction of $66,000.00. Following the acquisition, the treasurer directly owned 30,705 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $405,306. This trade represents a 19.45% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CAO Marissa Hassen acquired 3,782 shares of Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 12th. The stock was bought at an average price of $13.21 per share, with a total value of $49,960.22. Following the purchase, the chief accounting officer directly owned 9,780 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $129,193.80. This trade represents a 63.05% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. Over the last quarter, insiders acquired 16,282 shares of company stock worth $215,485. 0.68% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in NCDL. BNP Paribas Financial Markets grew its holdings in shares of Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending by 190.2% in the 3rd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 2,400 shares of the company’s stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 1,573 shares during the period. Advisory Services Network LLC acquired a new stake in Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending in the third quarter valued at $38,000. NewEdge Advisors LLC grew its stake in Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending by 33.0% in the 2nd quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 4,511 shares of the company’s stock valued at $73,000 after acquiring an additional 1,118 shares during the last quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC purchased a new position in Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending during the 3rd quarter valued at about $80,000. Finally, State of Wyoming acquired a new position in Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending during the second quarter worth about $108,000.

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.