Significant Increase in Short Interest for Golub Capital BDC, Inc. (NASDAQ:GBDC) in December

Golub Capital BDC, Inc. (NASDAQ:GBDC) experienced a notable rise in short interest during the month of December. As of December 15th, the short interest totaled 2,690,000 shares, reflecting an approximate 14.0% increase from the previous total of 2,360,000 shares reported on November 30th. Given the average daily trading volume of 1,290,000 shares, the current short-interest ratio stands at 2.1 days.

Analysts Optimistic About Golub Capital BDC

Several financial institutions have recently shared their insights regarding GBDC. In a report dated November 29th, StockNews.com upgraded Golub Capital BDC from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating. On November 21st, Wells Fargo & Company adjusted its target price for the shares, decreasing it from $15.50 to $15.00, while maintaining an "equal weight" rating. Currently, three analysts have assigned a hold rating and three others have issued buy ratings for the stock. According to MarketBeat, Golub Capital BDC holds a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" with an average price target of $16.40.

Recent Performance of Golub Capital BDC Stock

On December 27th, trading saw NASDAQ:GBDC rise by $0.04, bringing the stock price to $15.16. A total of 1,162,759 shares changed hands that day, in line with its average trading volume of 1,186,567 shares. The stock's fifty-day simple moving average is $15.29, while its 200-day simple moving average stands at $15.22. Golub Capital BDC currently has a market capitalization of $4.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.75, and a beta of 0.54. Over the past year, the stock has reached a low of $14.05 and a high of $17.72. Financial ratios show a current ratio of 4.73 and a quick ratio of 4.73, with a debt-to-equity ratio recorded at 1.15.

Dividend Announcement from Golub Capital BDC

Recently, Golub Capital BDC announced a quarterly dividend, which was distributed on December 27th. Shareholders who were on record as of December 9th received a dividend of $0.39 per share, with the ex-dividend date also on December 9th. This results in an annualized dividend of $1.56, translating to a yield of 10.29%. The company’s dividend payout ratio stands at 110.64%, indicating a significant share of earnings being allocated to dividend payments.

Institutional Investors' Activity

Institutional trading in Golub Capital BDC has seen various adjustments by investors. For instance, Partners Group Holding AG increased its holdings by 48.2% during the third quarter, owning 1,994,663 shares valued at approximately $30,139,000 after acquiring an additional 648,855 shares. Similarly, Northeast Financial Consultants Inc boosted its position by 151.8% during the second quarter, bringing its total to 2,104,195 shares valued at $33,057,000. Other firms, including BBR Partners LLC and Barclays PLC, have also adjusted their stakes in the company. Overall, approximately 42.38% of Golub Capital BDC’s shares are held by institutional investors.

About Golub Capital BDC

Golub Capital BDC, Inc. operates as a business development company and is categorized as an externally managed closed-end non-diversified management investment company. It specializes in making debt and minority equity investments in middle-market companies primarily sponsored by private equity investors.

Golub, BDC, Stocks