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Golub Capital Bdc (GBDC)
NASDAQ:GBDC

Golub Capital Bdc (GBDC) AI Stock Analysis

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GBDC

Golub Capital Bdc

(NASDAQ:GBDC)

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Neutral 65 (OpenAI - 5.2)
Rating:65Neutral
Price Target:
$14.00
â–²(7.20% Upside)
The score is anchored by strong profitability and constructive earnings-call credit quality/debt-cost execution, but it is held back by volatile cash flow and balance-sheet leverage/transparency concerns. Attractive valuation and dividend yield help, while weak technical momentum limits near-term outlook.
Positive Factors
High Profitability & Revenue Growth
GBDC’s exceptionally high gross and operating margins reflect a low-cost investment platform that captures interest income efficiently. Coupled with multi-year revenue expansion, this supports durable earnings power and the firm’s ability to fund dividends and reinvest in origination capabilities over the next several quarters.
Strong Credit Quality
Extremely low nonaccruals and a large share of investments in top internal rating categories indicate disciplined underwriting and portfolio resilience. This structural credit strength reduces expected loan losses, supports stable interest income, and improves long-term capital preservation for shareholders.
Effective Debt & Cost Management
Lowered funding costs materially expand net interest margins on floating-rate assets and demonstrate access to favorable capital markets. Sustainable borrowing-cost advantages enhance spread capture, support distributable income, and give management flexibility to compete on pricing and originate selectively.
Negative Factors
Elevated Leverage & Reporting Gaps
Meaningful leverage is inherent to the BDC model but increases sensitivity to credit and market shocks. Mixed debt reporting undermines transparency, complicates risk assessment and may constrain strategic flexibility if capital markets tighten or asset valuations deteriorate over the next several months.
Volatile Cash Generation
Inconsistent operating cash flow and volatile free cash flow create recurring uncertainty about internal funding for dividends and investment activity. This timing-driven variability increases reliance on external financing and makes stable capital allocation and dividend policy harder to sustain over medium term.
Industry Credit & Spread Headwinds
A tougher credit cycle with higher defaults and spread compression erodes yield on new originations and raises expected credit losses. For a middle‑market lender like GBDC, persistent industry stress can compress net yields, pressure NAV and dividends, and limit growth in originations over coming quarters.

Golub Capital Bdc (GBDC) vs. SPDR S&P 500 ETF (SPY)

Golub Capital Bdc Business Overview & Revenue Model

Company DescriptionGolub Capital BDC, Inc. (GBDC) is a business development company and operates as an externally managed closed-end non-diversified management investment company. It invests in debt and minority equity investments in middle-market companies that are, in most cases, sponsored by private equity investors. It typically invests in diversified consumer services, automobiles, healthcare technology, insurance, health care equipment and supplies, hotels, restaurants and leisure, healthcare providers and services, IT services and specialty retails. It seeks to invest in the United States. It primarily invests in first lien traditional senior debt, first lien one stop, junior debt and equity, senior secured, one stop, unitranche, second lien, subordinated and mezzanine loans of middle-market companies, and warrants.
How the Company Makes MoneyGolub Capital BDC, Inc. makes money primarily through interest income generated from its portfolio of debt investments. The company's revenue model is centered around providing loans to middle-market businesses, which typically have revenues between $10 million and $100 million. GBDC earns interest income from these loans, which are often structured with favorable terms to ensure consistent cash flow. Additionally, the firm may generate fee income from originating and managing these loans. Significant partnerships with private equity firms and other financial institutions can contribute to its deal flow and investment opportunities, enhancing its ability to generate returns for its shareholders. The company's focus on senior secured loans helps mitigate risk, further contributing to its earnings stability.

Golub Capital Bdc Earnings Call Summary

Earnings Call Date:Nov 18, 2025
(Q4-2025)
|
% Change Since: |
Next Earnings Date:May 11, 2026
Earnings Call Sentiment Neutral
The earnings call reflects a strong fiscal year 2025 performance with solid earnings and low levels of nonaccrual investments. However, the company is facing market challenges, including spread compression and elevated defaults in the leveraged loan market. Despite these headwinds, GBDC's robust origination activity and successful debt management position it well for future resilience.
Q4-2025 Updates
Positive Updates
Strong Fiscal Year 2025 Performance
GBDC had a solid quarter and a strong end to fiscal year 2025, with adjusted NII per share of $0.39 and an adjusted NII ROE of 10.4%. The company paid $1.65 per share of cumulative distributions, representing 10.9% of end-of-year NAV per share, which is $0.34 above GBDC's NAV per share at its IPO in 2010.
Low Nonaccrual Levels
Investments on nonaccrual status decreased to 0.3% of the total investment portfolio at fair value, well below the BDC peer industry average. About 90% of GBDC's investment portfolio remains in the highest performing internal rating categories.
Successful Debt Management
GBDC reduced its effective borrowing costs during the quarter to 5.6% annualized, considered an industry-leading level, by repricing its syndicated corporate revolver and calling the final legacy debt securitization.
Robust Origination Activity
GBDC closed on 3.8% of deals reviewed with a weighted average LTV of 42%, maintaining a strong position in the core middle market with a median EBITDA of $61 million for originations.
Negative Updates
Market Headwinds and Spread Compression
The direct lending market is facing headwinds, including narrower spreads across various fixed income markets and a decrease in base rates, which are expected to continue declining.
Credit Cycle and Elevated Defaults
The leveraged loan market is experiencing unusual levels of defaults and credit stress, which is expected to persist and impact different BDCs in varying ways.
Decline in Investment Income Yield
GBDC's investment income yield fell approximately 20 basis points sequentially to 10.4%, driven by a modest decline in weighted average base rates and compression of weighted average portfolio spreads.
Company Guidance
During the earnings call for the fiscal quarter and year ended September 30, 2025, GBDC provided guidance on its financial performance and market outlook. Adjusted net investment income (NII) per share was reported at $0.39, translating to an adjusted NII return on equity (ROE) of 10.4%. The adjusted net income per share stood at $0.36, reflecting an adjusted ROE of 9.6%. Over the fiscal year, GBDC distributed $1.65 per share, representing 10.9% of the end-of-year net asset value (NAV) per share, which was $14.97. The company's portfolio demonstrated solid credit performance, with 90% categorized in the highest-performing internal rating categories, and investments on nonaccrual status accounted for merely 0.3% of the total portfolio at fair value. Despite these positive metrics, GBDC acknowledged facing industry-wide headwinds, such as narrowing spreads and a challenging credit cycle with heightened defaults. The firm plans to maintain a prudent approach to dividends and will revisit its dividend policy early in 2026, aiming to align with its goals of stable NAV per share, minimized excise taxes, and sustainable dividend yield.

Golub Capital Bdc Financial Statement Overview

Summary
Profitability is strong (very high gross/operating margins and solid net margin) and revenue has grown over time, but cash flow is volatile with multiple years of negative operating/free cash flow. Balance-sheet leverage is meaningful and there is inconsistency in reported debt data, which reduces confidence in balance-sheet quality.
Income Statement
78
Positive
Profitability is strong across periods, with very high TTM (Trailing-Twelve-Months) gross and operating margins (~90% gross; ~64% operating) and solid net margin (~54%). Revenue has expanded meaningfully over the last several years (notably strong growth in 2021 and continued growth into TTM), supporting earnings power. The main offset is volatility in growth rates year-to-year (including a revenue decline in 2022 and a slower growth year in 2024), which reduces consistency.
Balance Sheet
63
Positive
The balance sheet shows a leveraged profile with debt-to-equity generally around ~1.1–1.23, which is typical for the structure but still increases sensitivity to credit/market conditions. Equity and assets have grown versus earlier years, and returns on equity are healthy (roughly ~6% to ~13% historically; ~9–10% recently), supporting the business model. A key concern is mixed reporting on debt (TTM shows total debt as 0 while leverage ratios remain elevated), creating uncertainty around the true debt load and limiting confidence in balance-sheet quality.
Cash Flow
52
Neutral
Cash generation is inconsistent. Operating cash flow swings from materially negative in several years (2021, 2022, and 2025 annual) to strongly positive in 2023, 2024, and TTM (Trailing-Twelve-Months). Free cash flow tracks operating cash flow and shows sharp volatility, including a large negative growth rate in TTM, which signals uneven cash conversion and potentially timing-driven fluctuations. The positive TTM operating cash flow is a near-term positive, but the history of negative periods keeps the score moderate.
BreakdownDec 2025Dec 2024Dec 2023Dec 2022Dec 2021
Income Statement
Total Revenue802.73M475.73M427.66M254.66M415.20M
Gross Profit629.31M272.57M284.43M165.28M349.46M
EBITDA661.42M274.36M262.21M154.67M340.82M
Net Income376.65M273.79M258.63M153.44M340.28M
Balance Sheet
Total Assets8.98B8.71B5.73B5.68B5.16B
Cash, Cash Equivalents and Short-Term Investments100.76M131.16M69.83M124.14M181.09M
Total Debt4.90B4.60B3.12B3.08B2.55B
Total Liabilities5.00B4.69B3.19B3.14B2.58B
Stockholders Equity3.98B4.01B2.55B2.54B2.58B
Cash Flow
Free Cash Flow-113.59M343.91M195.37M-416.46M-306.05M
Operating Cash Flow-113.59M343.91M195.37M-416.46M-306.05M
Investing Cash Flow0.000.000.000.000.00
Financing Cash Flow-131.59M-124.24M-235.55M353.13M366.85M

Golub Capital Bdc Technical Analysis

Technical Analysis Sentiment
Negative
Last Price13.06
Price Trends
50DMA
13.61
Negative
100DMA
13.56
Negative
200DMA
13.72
Negative
Market Momentum
MACD
-0.14
Positive
RSI
38.29
Neutral
STOCH
19.13
Positive
Evaluating momentum and price trends is crucial in stock analysis to make informed investment decisions. For GBDC, the sentiment is Negative. The current price of 13.06 is below the 20-day moving average (MA) of 13.57, below the 50-day MA of 13.61, and below the 200-day MA of 13.72, indicating a bearish trend. The MACD of -0.14 indicates Positive momentum. The RSI at 38.29 is Neutral, neither overbought nor oversold. The STOCH value of 19.13 is Positive, not indicating any strong overbought or oversold conditions. Overall, these indicators collectively point to a Negative sentiment for GBDC.

Golub Capital Bdc Risk Analysis

Golub Capital Bdc disclosed 107 risk factors in its most recent earnings report. Golub Capital Bdc reported the most risks in the "Finance & Corporate" category.
Finance & Corporate - Financial and accounting risks. Risks related to the execution of corporate activity and strategy
Latest Risks Added 0 New Risks

Golub Capital Bdc Peers Comparison

Overall Rating
UnderperformOutperform
Sector (68)
Financial Indicators
Name
Overall Rating
Market Cap
P/E Ratio
ROE
Dividend Yield
Revenue Growth
EPS Growth
79
Outperform
$3.09B10.1915.21%10.00%-15.32%-12.29%
77
Outperform
$5.50B10.2919.07%7.17%11.60%9.38%
68
Neutral
$18.00B11.429.92%3.81%9.73%1.22%
66
Neutral
$1.07B8.078.75%17.34%-16.58%65.24%
65
Neutral
$3.44B9.039.42%11.70%24.12%1.09%
64
Neutral
$1.97B10.2011.91%9.64%-6.44%-1.18%
60
Neutral
$3.72B13.544.24%18.52%-13.67%-48.49%
* Financial Sector Average
Performance Comparison
Ticker
Company Name
Price
Change
% Change
GBDC
Golub Capital Bdc
13.06
-0.82
-5.91%
HTGC
Hercules Capital
16.98
-1.87
-9.92%
MAIN
Main Street Capital
61.38
4.47
7.86%
TSLX
Sixth Street Specialty Lending
20.90
0.66
3.26%
FSK
FS KKR Capital
13.29
-6.53
-32.95%
GSBD
Goldman Sachs BDC
9.38
-1.82
-16.25%
Glossary
BuyA stock rated as a "Buy" is expected to perform better than the overall market or a specific benchmark over the near-to-medium term. This rating suggests the stock is likely to deliver higher returns compared to other stocks in the same sector or market index. Note: This is not investment advice; please consult a financial advisor before making investment decisions.
HoldA stock rated as a "Hold" is expected to perform in line with the overall market or a specific benchmark. This rating indicates that the stock is neither particularly compelling nor unfavorable for investment. Note: This is not investment advice; please consult a financial advisor before making investment decisions.
SellA stock rated as a "Sell" is expected to perform worse than the overall market or a specific benchmark over the near-to-medium term. This rating suggests the stock may deliver lower returns compared to other stocks in the same sector or market index. Note: This is not investment advice; please consult a financial advisor before making investment decisions.

Disclaimer

This AI Analyst Stock Report is automatically generated by our AI systems using advanced algorithms and publicly available financial, technical, and market data. While the information provided aims to be accurate and insightful, it is intended for informational purposes only and should not be considered financial advice. Any content created by an AI (Artificial Intelligence) system may contain inaccuracies and/or contain errors. Investing in stocks carries inherent risks, and past performance is not indicative of future results. This report does not account for your personal financial circumstances, objectives, or risk tolerance. Always conduct your own research or consult with a qualified financial advisor before making investment decisions. The analysis and recommendations provided are based on historical and current data and may not fully reflect future market conditions or unexpected developments. Neither the creators of this report nor its affiliated entities guarantee the accuracy, completeness, or reliability of the information presented. Use this report at your own discretion and risk.Date of analysis: Feb 05, 2026