Covered — but thin, with a one-off on top. Fiscal Q3 2026 net investment income of $0.49 a share covers the $0.45 quarterly run rate of the $0.15 monthly distribution, but at 92% it leaves little room. NAV rose slightly to $21.50 from $21.36. The $0.18 supplemental paid in September 2026 is not part of the monthly promise — score Gladstone on $0.15 a month.
Key risk: Small-business credit at high yields — the portfolio’s 11.8% weighted-average debt yield signals borrower risk, and a soft quarter for NII lands directly on a 92% payout.
Changes if: NII falls below $0.45 a quarter, or NAV turns down quarter over quarter.
- !Coverage check: Fiscal Q3 2026 NII of $0.49 a share against $0.45 of monthly distributions in the quarter — 92% payout, covered but thin.
- ✓Yield check: 9.80% indicated — $0.15/mo × 12 at the $18.36 close on Oct. 23, 2026. The monthly rate is the promise; the $0.18 September supplemental is excluded from it.
- ✓NAV check: NAV per share of $21.50 at June 30, 2026, up slightly from $21.36 at March 31, 2026, on $485.7 million of net assets.
What this grade doesn't say: It screens the dividend only — covered, real, compounding. It says nothing about valuation or price: a well-covered payer can still be overpriced, and its price can still fall.