Ellington Financial Inc. (NYSE:EFC) Short Interest Up 15.2% in January

Ellington Financial Inc. (NYSE:EFC) was the target of a large growth in short interest during the month of January. As of January 31st, there was short interest totalling 5,520,000 shares, a growth of 15.2% from the January 15th total of 4,790,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 892,900 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 6.2 days.

Ellington Financial Stock Performance

NYSE EFC traded up $0.10 on Monday, reaching $12.98. The stock had a trading volume of 883,573 shares, compared to its average volume of 838,743. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 10.87, a current ratio of 37.04 and a quick ratio of 37.04. The company has a market cap of $1.18 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.90 and a beta of 1.97. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $12.40 and a two-hundred day moving average of $12.58. Ellington Financial has a 1-year low of $10.88 and a 1-year high of $13.46.

Ellington Financial Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a monthly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 25th. Investors of record on Friday, February 28th will be paid a $0.13 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 28th. This represents a $1.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 12.02%. Ellington Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 119.08%.

Institutional Trading of Ellington Financial

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of EFC. Barclays PLC increased its position in shares of Ellington Financial by 230.3% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 138,440 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,784,000 after purchasing an additional 96,525 shares during the period. State Street Corp increased its holdings in Ellington Financial by 4.1% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 3,140,371 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $40,885,000 after buying an additional 124,943 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its holdings in Ellington Financial by 48.0% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 231,543 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,985,000 after buying an additional 75,143 shares during the period. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. raised its position in shares of Ellington Financial by 146.5% in the 3rd quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 726,779 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $9,368,000 after buying an additional 431,945 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Intech Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Ellington Financial during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $695,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 55.62% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have commented on EFC shares. JMP Securities reiterated a “market outperform” rating and issued a $14.00 price objective on shares of Ellington Financial in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. B. Riley upgraded shares of Ellington Financial to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, three have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $13.58.

Ellington Financial Company Profile

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.