MFA Financial (NYSE:MFA) Announces Quarterly Earnings Results

MFA Financial (NYSE:MFA) released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday. The real estate investment trust reported $0.27 EPS for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.27, FiscalAI reports. The firm had revenue of $88.72 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $60.56 million. MFA Financial had a net margin of 17.51% and a return on equity of 7.26%. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.39 EPS.

Here are the key takeaways from MFA Financial’s conference call:

• The company deployed over $100 million of excess cash and acquired $1.9 billion of loans and securities in Q4 (including $1.2B agencies, $443M non‑QM, and $226M Lima One originations), which management says positions MFA to grow earnings and ROE in 2026.
• MFA issued Series C and B preferred shares via an ATM and used proceeds to repurchase ~540,000 common shares at a weighted average discount to Economic Book Value of ~33%; the board reauthorized the buyback program and management calls this accretive while preserving the equity base.
• Management highlighted $2.3 billion of currently callable securitized debt and expects calling/reissuing deals to unlock an estimated $50–$100 million of capital this year to redeploy into higher‑return assets, with non‑QM securitization spreads remaining attractive.
• Credit stress remains in legacy books—overall delinquency ended 2025 just over 7% (down YoY but up 30 bps in Q4) and a legacy multifamily transitional portfolio is carried at a $42 million discount to par, causing nonaccruals and interest reversals that pressured net interest income.
• Operating performance improved—G&A fell ~9.5% to $119M in 2025, distributable earnings rose to $0.27 per share in Q4 (up from $0.20), and management expects DE to reconverge with the dividend in the back half of 2026 while Economic Book Value is estimated to be up ~3% since year‑end.

MFA Financial Stock Performance

MFA traded down $0.02 on Thursday, hitting $10.07. 320,452 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,473,510. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $9.74 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $9.58. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.03 billion, a PE ratio of 11.84 and a beta of 1.59. MFA Financial has a 12 month low of $7.85 and a 12 month high of $11.08.

MFA Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 30th. Investors of record on Wednesday, December 31st were issued a dividend of $0.36 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, December 31st. This represents a $1.44 annualized dividend and a yield of 14.3%. MFA Financial’s dividend payout ratio is currently 169.41%.

MFA Financial News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting MFA Financial this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Revenue materially beat expectations and EPS met consensus (Q4 EPS $0.27 vs. estimate $0.27; revenue $88.7M vs. est. ~$60.6M) — strong top‑line drove better-than-expected operating results. MFA Financial, Inc. Announces Fourth Quarter and Full Year 2025 Financial Results
• Positive Sentiment: Management outlined capital redeployment and expense-reduction targets and said buybacks will continue — actions that can support NAV per share and payout coverage over time. MFA Financial outlines capital redeployment and expense reduction targets as preferred issuance and buybacks continue
• Neutral Sentiment: Earnings presentation, call transcript and slide deck are available for detail — useful for assessing management’s assumptions on asset yields, leverage and timing of redeployments. MFA Financial, Inc. 2025 Q4 – Results – Earnings Call Presentation
• Neutral Sentiment: Earnings call transcripts and highlights summarize commentary on economic returns and portfolio positioning — read to gauge management tone and execution risks. MFA Financial MFA Q4 2025 Earnings Call Transcript
• Negative Sentiment: EPS declined year‑over‑year (from $0.39 a year ago to $0.27), raising concerns about recurring earnings power and coverage of the common dividend. Analysts and commentary flagged dividend coverage as a test point. MFA Financial in spotlight: Earnings test for dividend coverage
• Negative Sentiment: Management is continuing preferred issuance even as it executes buybacks — new preferred issuance can alter capital mix and may limit upside to common shareholders if relied upon to fund dividends. MFA Financial outlines capital redeployment and expense reduction targets as preferred issuance and buybacks continue

Institutional Investors Weigh In On MFA Financial

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Captrust Financial Advisors lifted its holdings in MFA Financial by 18.9% in the 4th quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 16,417 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $153,000 after buying an additional 2,606 shares during the period. Virtus Advisers LLC bought a new position in MFA Financial in the 4th quarter worth $128,000. CIBC Bancorp USA Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of MFA Financial in the 3rd quarter worth about $101,000. PharVision Advisers LLC bought a new stake in shares of MFA Financial during the 3rd quarter valued at about $117,000. Finally, Verition Fund Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of MFA Financial during the third quarter valued at about $100,000. 65.28% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MFA has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Weiss Ratings upgraded MFA Financial from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research report on Friday, January 16th. UBS Group dropped their price target on MFA Financial from $10.50 to $10.25 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, November 18th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of MFA Financial from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, November 10th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $10.31.

MFA Financial Company Profile

MFA Financial, Inc, headquartered in New York City, is a real estate investment trust that specializes in investing in residential mortgage loans and mortgage-related securities. The company’s primary objective is to generate attractive risk-adjusted returns through net interest income and capital appreciation. As a mortgage REIT, MFA Financial focuses on constructing a diversified portfolio of agency and non-agency residential mortgage assets, leveraging its expertise in acquiring, financing and servicing mortgage products.

MFA Financial’s investment portfolio encompasses a wide range of mortgage instruments, including adjustable-rate and fixed-rate mortgage loans, interest-only securities, and agency mortgage-backed securities guaranteed by government-sponsored entities.