JPMorgan Chase & Co. Cuts Annaly Capital Management (NYSE:NLY) Price Target to $24.00

Annaly Capital Management (NYSE:NLY) had its price objective reduced by JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $26.00 to $24.00 in a research note released on Friday morning,Benzinga reports. They currently have an overweight rating on the real estate investment trust’s stock.

NLY has been the subject of several other reports. Wall Street Zen upgraded Annaly Capital Management from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, May 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on Annaly Capital Management from $25.00 to $24.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday. UBS Group reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $23.00 price objective (up from $22.50) on shares of Annaly Capital Management in a research report on Friday, April 24th. Piper Sandler upped their target price on Annaly Capital Management from $24.50 to $25.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 2nd. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $25.00 target price on shares of Annaly Capital Management in a research report on Wednesday, June 3rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have assigned a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $24.33.

Annaly Capital Management Price Performance

NYSE:NLY opened at $22.43 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $22.16 and a 200-day simple moving average of $22.45. The firm has a market cap of $16.43 billion, a PE ratio of 5.62, a P/E/G ratio of 6.73 and a beta of 1.16. Annaly Capital Management has a 1-year low of $20.00 and a 1-year high of $24.52.

Annaly Capital Management (NYSE:NLY) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 21st. The real estate investment trust reported $0.79 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.75 by $0.04. Annaly Capital Management had a net margin of 43.66% and a return on equity of 16.00%. The business had revenue of $892.86 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $639.80 million. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Annaly Capital Management will post 3.03 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Annaly Capital Management Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 31st. Investors of record on Tuesday, June 30th will be given a dividend of $0.75 per share. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 13.4%. This is a positive change from Annaly Capital Management’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, June 30th. Annaly Capital Management’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 75.19%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Annaly Capital Management

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Annaly Capital Management by 5.0% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 63,613,639 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $1,422,401,000 after buying an additional 3,024,564 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp raised its position in shares of Annaly Capital Management by 8.4% in the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 26,425,278 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $608,994,000 after buying an additional 2,053,451 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Annaly Capital Management by 8.9% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 18,401,487 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $411,031,000 after acquiring an additional 1,503,559 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Annaly Capital Management in the fourth quarter valued at $162,477,000. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted its holdings in Annaly Capital Management by 33.5% in the fourth quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 6,977,329 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $156,013,000 after acquiring an additional 1,751,509 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 51.56% of the company’s stock.

Key Stories Impacting Annaly Capital Management

Here are the key news stories impacting Annaly Capital Management this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Annaly’s Q2 results and earnings-call commentary pointed to strong momentum, with management highlighting diversified housing finance growth across Agency securities, Residential Credit, and MSR opportunities, along with disciplined capital allocation. The company also reported strong profitability and a 5.5% economic return, which can help reassure investors about earnings durability. Annaly Q2 Earnings Call Highlights Housing Finance Strategy
• Positive Sentiment: Several reports said Annaly’s earnings available for distribution topped its dividend for a ninth straight quarter, and that rising EAD is supporting another dividend increase. For a high-yield mortgage REIT like NLY, this is important because it suggests the payout may remain well covered. Annaly Capital Management’s EAD Topped Its Dividend for a 9th Straight Quarter. Here’s Why That Matters for Its 12.5%+ Yielding Payout.
• Positive Sentiment: Annaly also raised its quarterly dividend to $0.75 and signaled attractive 14%–16% levered return potential in agency assets, reinforcing the stock’s appeal to income investors. Annaly signals agency 14%-16% levered return opportunity as it raises quarterly dividend to $0.75
• Neutral Sentiment: JPMorgan and Wells Fargo both lowered their price targets to $24 from higher levels, but kept overweight ratings. That suggests analysts still see upside in NLY, but are somewhat more cautious on valuation and near-term expectations. Analyst price target updates from JPMorgan and Wells Fargo
• Neutral Sentiment: Other coverage framed Annaly as a strong-yield, discounted valuation story, which supports the stock’s income-investor case but does not introduce a major new catalyst. Annaly Capital Management’s EAD Topped Its Dividend for a 9th Straight Quarter. Here’s Why That Matters for Its 12.5%+ Yielding Payout.

Annaly Capital Management Company Profile

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.