Wells Fargo Cuts Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending (NCDL) Rating, Sees Pressure on Dividend Coverage

With an annual dividend yield of 11.30%, Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending Corp. (NYSE:NCDL) is included among the Top 10 Dividend Stocks with 10%+ Yield.

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On June 12, Wells Fargo downgraded Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending Corp. (NYSE:NCDL) to Underweight from Equal Weight and lowered its price target to $12 from $13.The firm said it downgraded three business development company stocks because of “richer valuations and the difficulty to deliver for those in today’s environment.” Analyst Finian O’Shea said continued non-accruals and restructurings could weigh on net operating income and dividend coverage into next year. Wells Fargo also said Nuveen Churchill’s credit performance, combined with “thin” portfolio spreads, has resulted in a dividend yield that trails the broader market.

Earlier, on May 22, BofA lowered its price recommendation on NCDL to $14 from $15.25. It reiterated a Buy rating on the shares. The firm said it updated its estimates and price targets for several business development companies following their first-quarter earnings reports.

Nuveen Churchill Direct Lending Corp. (NYSE:NCDL) is a specialty finance company. Its investment objective is to generate attractive risk-adjusted returns through current income by investing primarily in senior secured loans to private equity-owned middle-market companies in the United States.

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