Annaly Capital Management (NYSE:NLY) Hits New 12-Month High – Still a Buy?

Annaly Capital Management Inc (NYSE:NLY) reached a new 52-week high during trading on Friday . The company traded as high as $24.00 and last traded at $23.9050, with a volume of 359240 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $23.83.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of Annaly Capital Management from $21.00 to $22.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, October 20th. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Annaly Capital Management in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. BTIG Research raised Annaly Capital Management from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $25.00 price target for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 6th. Jones Trading reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $22.00 target price on shares of Annaly Capital Management in a research note on Thursday, October 23rd. Finally, Piper Sandler restated an “overweight” rating and set a $25.00 price target (up previously from $23.50) on shares of Annaly Capital Management in a research report on Thursday. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $22.81.

Annaly Capital Management Price Performance

The business’s fifty day moving average price is $22.56 and its 200-day moving average price is $21.39. The stock has a market capitalization of $16.35 billion, a PE ratio of 11.08, a P/E/G ratio of 7.20 and a beta of 1.25.

Annaly Capital Management (NYSE:NLY) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 22nd. The real estate investment trust reported $0.73 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.72 by $0.01. Annaly Capital Management had a net margin of 26.68% and a return on equity of 15.96%. The company had revenue of $1.55 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $493.55 million. On average, analysts expect that Annaly Capital Management Inc will post 2.81 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Annaly Capital Management Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 30th. Investors of record on Wednesday, December 31st will be given a $0.70 dividend. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 11.7%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, December 31st. Annaly Capital Management’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 129.63%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Annaly Capital Management

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Annaly Capital Management by 4.2% during the 2nd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 58,701,446 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $1,104,761,000 after acquiring an additional 2,344,867 shares during the last quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC raised its position in Annaly Capital Management by 73.9% during the third quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 270,482 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $5,680,000 after purchasing an additional 114,946 shares in the last quarter. CreativeOne Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in Annaly Capital Management during the second quarter valued at about $429,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in Annaly Capital Management by 7.2% during the second quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 4,083,953 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $76,860,000 after purchasing an additional 275,186 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Meritage Portfolio Management boosted its holdings in shares of Annaly Capital Management by 45.9% in the 2nd quarter. Meritage Portfolio Management now owns 204,205 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $3,843,000 after purchasing an additional 64,216 shares in the last quarter. 51.56% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Annaly Capital Management

Annaly Capital Management, Inc is a publicly traded real estate investment trust (REIT) that specializes in generating income through investment in mortgage-related assets. The company’s core business activities include the acquisition, financing, and management of a diversified portfolio of agency and non-agency residential mortgage-backed securities (RMBS), commercial mortgage-backed securities (CMBS), and other real estate debt instruments. Annaly seeks to profit from the spread between the interest earned on its mortgage investments and its cost of funds, as well as from capital gains realized through active portfolio management.

Founded in 1997 and headquartered in New York City, Annaly has grown to become one of the largest mortgage REITs in the United States.