Short Interest in BlackRock TCP Capital Corp. (NASDAQ:TCPC) Declines By 27.8%

BlackRock TCP Capital Corp. (NASDAQ:TCPC) saw a significant decrease in short interest in the month of November. As of November 15th, there was short interest totalling 1,220,000 shares, a decrease of 27.8% from the October 31st total of 1,690,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 616,300 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 2.0 days.

Insider Transactions at BlackRock TCP Capital

In other news, President Jason Mehring acquired 4,500 shares of BlackRock TCP Capital stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 27th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $9.30 per share, with a total value of $41,850.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the president now directly owns 19,914 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $185,200.20. This represents a 29.19 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Philip M. Tseng acquired 5,000 shares of BlackRock TCP Capital stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 6th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $9.07 per share, with a total value of $45,350.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 17,481 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $158,552.67. This trade represents a 40.06 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders bought 21,400 shares of company stock valued at $195,566 over the last three months. Company insiders own 0.16% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On BlackRock TCP Capital

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Future Financial Wealth Managment LLC acquired a new position in shares of BlackRock TCP Capital in the third quarter valued at approximately $25,000. McIlrath & Eck LLC acquired a new position in shares of BlackRock TCP Capital in the third quarter valued at approximately $46,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of BlackRock TCP Capital in the second quarter valued at approximately $60,000. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC grew its position in shares of BlackRock TCP Capital by 729.0% in the third quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC now owns 7,254 shares of the investment management company’s stock valued at $60,000 after purchasing an additional 6,379 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Quantbot Technologies LP acquired a new stake in BlackRock TCP Capital during the third quarter worth approximately $79,000.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently issued reports on TCPC shares. StockNews.com upgraded BlackRock TCP Capital from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, November 18th. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH lowered BlackRock TCP Capital from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, August 8th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on BlackRock TCP Capital from $7.50 to $8.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Thursday, November 7th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their target price on BlackRock TCP Capital from $10.50 to $9.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, August 8th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and six have given a hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, BlackRock TCP Capital presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $9.00.

BlackRock TCP Capital Stock Performance

NASDAQ:TCPC traded up $0.15 on Friday, hitting $9.41. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 433,335 shares, compared to its average volume of 502,595. The company has a current ratio of 39.37, a quick ratio of 39.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.34. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $8.44 and a two-hundred day moving average of $9.60. The firm has a market capitalization of $805.41 million, a P/E ratio of -18.82 and a beta of 1.47. BlackRock TCP Capital has a one year low of $7.71 and a one year high of $12.43.

BlackRock TCP Capital (NASDAQ:TCPC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 6th. The investment management company reported $0.36 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.40 by ($0.04). BlackRock TCP Capital had a negative net margin of 15.22% and a positive return on equity of 14.16%. The business had revenue of $70.93 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $69.13 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.49 EPS. Research analysts predict that BlackRock TCP Capital will post 1.65 earnings per share for the current year.

BlackRock TCP Capital Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 17th will be given a $0.44 dividend. This is an increase from BlackRock TCP Capital’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.34. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 17th. This represents a $1.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 18.70%. BlackRock TCP Capital’s dividend payout ratio is presently -272.00%.

About BlackRock TCP Capital

BlackRock TCP Capital Corp. is a business development company specializing in direct equity and debt investments in middle-market, small businesses, debt securities, senior secured loans, junior loans, originated loans, mezzanine, senior debt instruments, bonds, and secondary-market investments. It typically invests in communication services, public relations services, television, wireless telecommunication services, apparel, textile mills, restaurants, retailing, energy, oil and gas extraction, Patent owners and Lessors, Federal and Federally- Sponsored Credit agencies, insurance, hospital and healthcare centers, Biotechnology, engineering services, heavy electrical equipment, tax accounting, scientific and related consulting services, charter freight air transportation, Information technology consulting, application hosting services, software diagram and design, computer aided design, communication equipment, electronics manufacturing equipment, computer components, chemicals.