Ellington Financial Inc. (NYSE:EFC) Given Average Rating of “Buy” by Analysts

Ellington Financial Inc. (NYSE:EFC) has been assigned an average rating of “Buy” from the five research firms that are covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, three have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price target among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $14.00.

A number of brokerages recently commented on EFC. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price target on Ellington Financial from $13.75 to $14.50 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, March 3rd. B. Riley raised Ellington Financial to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Finally, JMP Securities reaffirmed a “market outperform” rating and issued a $14.00 price target on shares of Ellington Financial in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd.

Ellington Financial Stock Performance

NYSE:EFC opened at $13.62 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $1.23 billion, a PE ratio of 10.39 and a beta of 1.99. Ellington Financial has a fifty-two week low of $10.88 and a fifty-two week high of $14.40. 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 business has a 50 day moving average price of $12.74 and a 200-day moving average price of $12.65.

Ellington Financial (NYSE:EFC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 27th. The financial services provider reported $0.45 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.38 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $38.13 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $112.88 million. Ellington Financial had a return on equity of 10.26% and a net margin of 106.40%. Equities research analysts predict that Ellington Financial will post 1.38 earnings per share for the current year.

Ellington Financial Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a mar 25 dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 25th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be issued a $0.13 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. Ellington Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 113.04%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ellington Financial

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System raised its holdings in Ellington Financial by 3.0% in the fourth quarter. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System now owns 30,531 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $370,000 after purchasing an additional 880 shares in the last quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund raised its holdings in Ellington Financial by 4.4% in the fourth quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund now owns 21,364 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $259,000 after purchasing an additional 900 shares in the last quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC raised its holdings in Ellington Financial by 162.3% in the fourth quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 2,602 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 1,610 shares in the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE raised its holdings in Ellington Financial by 0.8% in the fourth quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 196,381 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,380,000 after purchasing an additional 1,648 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Portside Wealth Group LLC raised its holdings in Ellington Financial by 13.3% in the third quarter. Portside Wealth Group LLC now owns 14,415 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $186,000 after purchasing an additional 1,688 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 55.62% of the company’s stock.

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.