Ellington Financial Inc. (EFC) – What Are Researchers Saying About This Stock?

Shares of Ellington Financial Inc. (NYSE:EFC) have earned an average rating of “Hold” from the five brokerages that are covering the company, Marketbeat.com reports. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and one has issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 1 year price objective among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $14.25.

Several equities research analysts have commented on the stock. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Ellington Financial from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 8th. UBS Group boosted their target price on Ellington Financial from $14.00 to $14.50 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 19th. Piper Sandler reduced their target price on Ellington Financial from $15.00 to $14.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 9th. Finally, Zacks Research downgraded Ellington Financial from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, July 13th.

Ellington Financial Stock Performance

Shares of EFC stock opened at $11.90 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 10.39, a current ratio of 52.06 and a quick ratio of 52.06. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $12.81 and a 200-day moving average of $13.11. Ellington Financial has a one year low of $11.27 and a one year high of $14.12. The company has a market cap of $1.53 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.25 and a beta of 0.97.

Ellington Financial (NYSE:EFC) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The financial services provider reported $0.60 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.46 by $0.14. Ellington Financial had a net margin of 52.43% and a return on equity of 16.61%. The business had revenue of $134.11 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $114.59 million. Equities research analysts forecast that Ellington Financial will post 2.13 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ellington Financial Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a monthly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 30th. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 30th will be given a $0.13 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 30th. This represents a $1.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 13.1%. Ellington Financial’s payout ratio is currently 95.12%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ellington Financial

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its stake in shares of Ellington Financial by 30.2% during the 3rd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 6,603 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $78,000 after purchasing an additional 1,532 shares during the period. Farther Finance Advisors LLC grew its position in Ellington Financial by 287.6% during the third quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 2,566 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 1,904 shares during the period. State Street Corp grew its position in Ellington Financial by 7.5% during the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 4,952,930 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $68,043,000 after buying an additional 347,567 shares during the period. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company grew its position in Ellington Financial by 3.2% during the second quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 51,525 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $701,000 after buying an additional 1,610 shares during the period. Finally, Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Ellington Financial during the second quarter worth about $243,000. 55.62% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Ellington Financial

Ellington Financial Inc (NYSE:EFC) is a real estate investment trust that invests in a range of mortgage-related and other financial assets. Its portfolio includes residential and commercial mortgage loans, mortgage-backed securities, consumer loans and other credit-related investments.

The company focuses primarily on assets tied to the U.S. housing and real estate markets. Its investment activities may include acquiring, financing and managing residential mortgage loans, including non-agency and other specialized mortgage assets, as well as commercial mortgage investments and mortgage-backed securities.