Ellington Financial Inc. (NYSE:EFC) Receives $13.85 Consensus Price Target from Brokerages

Shares of Ellington Financial Inc. (NYSE:EFC) have been assigned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the six research firms that are presently covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and four have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month price target among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $13.85.

Separately, JMP Securities decreased their price objective on Ellington Financial from $14.50 to $14.00 and set a “market outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 24th.

Ellington Financial Stock Down 0.8 %

NYSE EFC opened at $13.23 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $12.95 and its 200-day moving average price is $12.17. The company has a quick ratio of 73.16, a current ratio of 73.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 10.84. Ellington Financial has a 52 week low of $10.88 and a 52 week high of $13.47. The company has a market capitalization of $1.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.66 and a beta of 1.98.

Ellington Financial (NYSE:EFC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 6th. The financial services provider reported $0.33 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.36 by ($0.03). Ellington Financial had a return on equity of 9.76% and a net margin of 103.55%. The company had revenue of $33.60 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $37.20 million. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.38 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Ellington Financial will post 1.37 earnings per share for the current year.

Ellington Financial Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a monthly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 25th. Investors of record on Monday, September 30th will be given a dividend of $0.13 per share. This represents a $1.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 11.80%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 30th. Ellington Financial’s dividend payout ratio is currently 243.75%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CIO Michael W. Vranos sold 5,900 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $12.12, for a total transaction of $71,508.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive now owns 179,655 shares in the company, valued at $2,177,418.60. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 4.40% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ellington Financial

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in EFC. Victory Capital Management Inc. grew its holdings in Ellington Financial by 77.0% during the 4th quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 18,680 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $237,000 after buying an additional 8,126 shares in the last quarter. Swiss National Bank grew its holdings in Ellington Financial by 5.1% during the 4th quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 147,300 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,872,000 after buying an additional 7,100 shares in the last quarter. Amalgamated Bank grew its holdings in Ellington Financial by 5.7% during the 4th quarter. Amalgamated Bank now owns 28,648 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $364,000 after buying an additional 1,555 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in Ellington Financial by 20.3% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 658,398 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $8,368,000 after buying an additional 111,314 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Ellington Financial by 11.6% in the 4th quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 408,727 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $5,195,000 after purchasing an additional 42,555 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 55.62% of the company’s stock.

About Ellington Financial

Ellington Financial Inc, through its subsidiary, Ellington Financial Operating Partnership LLC, acquires and manages mortgage-related, consumer-related, corporate-related, and other financial assets in the United States. The company acquires and manages residential mortgage-backed securities (RMBS) backed by prime jumbo, Alt-A, manufactured housing, and subprime mortgage; RMBS for which the principal and interest payments are guaranteed by the U.S.