Short Interest in Fidus Investment Corporation (NASDAQ:FDUS) Rises By 165.2%

Fidus Investment Corporation (NASDAQ:FDUS) was the target of a significant growth in short interest in February. As of February 13th, there was short interest totaling 303,591 shares, a growth of 165.2% from the January 29th total of 114,455 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 259,112 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 1.2 days. Approximately 0.8% of the shares of the stock are sold short. Approximately 0.8% of the shares of the stock are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 259,112 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 1.2 days.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price objective on Fidus Investment from $21.50 to $21.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, November 10th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Fidus Investment in a research report on Monday, December 29th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has assigned a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $21.75.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Fidus Investment

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in FDUS. Millennium Management LLC purchased a new stake in Fidus Investment during the 4th quarter valued at $4,778,000. Jane Street Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Fidus Investment during the fourth quarter valued at about $2,118,000. Muzinich & Co. Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Fidus Investment by 40.3% during the fourth quarter. Muzinich & Co. Inc. now owns 347,114 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $6,699,000 after purchasing an additional 99,671 shares during the period. Columbus Macro LLC grew its stake in shares of Fidus Investment by 21.0% in the fourth quarter. Columbus Macro LLC now owns 485,780 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $9,376,000 after purchasing an additional 84,320 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Envestnet Asset Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Fidus Investment by 22.4% in the third quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 439,915 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $8,913,000 after purchasing an additional 80,500 shares during the last quarter. 28.14% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Fidus Investment Trading Down 0.7%

Shares of NASDAQ:FDUS opened at $18.40 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $670.31 million, a P/E ratio of 7.80 and a beta of 0.73. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $19.20 and its 200-day moving average price is $20.01. Fidus Investment has a 12-month low of $16.70 and a 12-month high of $23.48.

Fidus Investment (NASDAQ:FDUS) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 26th. The asset manager reported $0.52 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.48 by $0.04. Fidus Investment had a return on equity of 10.91% and a net margin of 54.03%.The company had revenue of $32.73 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $39.46 million. As a group, research analysts predict that Fidus Investment will post 2.28 EPS for the current year.

Fidus Investment Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 20th will be paid a dividend of $0.43 per share. This represents a $1.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 9.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 20th. Fidus Investment’s dividend payout ratio is 72.88%.

Fidus Investment Company Profile

Fidus Investment Corporation (NASDAQ: FDUS) is a closed-end, externally managed business development company (BDC) that provides specialized financing solutions to U.S. middle-market companies. Operated by Fidus Investment Advisors, LLC, a registered investment adviser, the company is regulated under the Investment Company Act of 1940 and trades on the Nasdaq Capital Market.

The firm focuses on structuring senior secured and unitranche loans, mezzanine debt and equity investments for established businesses across a range of industries.