Ellington Financial Inc. (NYSE:EFC) Receives Average Rating of “Buy” from Brokerages

Ellington Financial Inc. (NYSE:EFC) has received a consensus rating of “Buy” from the five research firms that are covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold recommendation, three have given a buy recommendation and one has issued a strong buy recommendation on the company. The average 12 month target price among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $13.58.

Separately, B. Riley raised shares of Ellington Financial to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday.

Ellington Financial Price Performance

Shares of EFC stock opened at $12.15 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 10.87, a quick ratio of 37.04 and a current ratio of 37.04. The stock has a market cap of $1.10 billion, a PE ratio of 9.27 and a beta of 1.97. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $12.25 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $12.59. Ellington Financial has a 52-week low of $10.88 and a 52-week high of $13.46.

Ellington Financial (NYSE:EFC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 6th. The financial services provider reported $0.40 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.36 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $33.63 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $37.95 million. Ellington Financial had a net margin of 106.40% and a return on equity of 10.26%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.33 earnings per share. As a group, analysts forecast that Ellington Financial will post 1.37 EPS for the current year.

Ellington Financial Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a monthly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, February 25th. Investors of record on Friday, January 31st will be given a dividend of $0.13 per share. This represents a $1.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 12.84%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 31st. Ellington Financial’s dividend payout ratio is currently 119.08%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Ellington Financial news, CIO Michael W. Vranos sold 14,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, October 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $12.48, for a total value of $174,720.00. Following the transaction, the executive now directly owns 168,359 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,101,120.32. This trade represents a 7.68 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 4.40% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. State Street Corp increased its holdings in Ellington Financial by 4.1% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 3,140,371 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $40,885,000 after buying an additional 124,943 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Ellington Financial by 2.4% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,965,296 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $25,338,000 after buying an additional 46,530 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in Ellington Financial by 5.7% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 778,931 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $10,040,000 after buying an additional 41,669 shares in the last quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. increased its stake in Ellington Financial by 146.5% in the third quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 726,779 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $9,368,000 after acquiring an additional 431,945 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Strategic Financial Concepts LLC raised its holdings in shares of Ellington Financial by 1,667.2% during the 2nd quarter. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC now owns 282,746 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 266,746 shares in the last quarter. 55.62% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.