Ellington Financial Inc. (NYSE:EFC) Receives $14.06 Consensus Target Price from Brokerages

Shares of Ellington Financial Inc. (NYSE:EFC) have been given a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by the six ratings firms that are covering the company, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and four have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month price objective among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $13.95.

EFC has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Jonestrading assumed coverage on Ellington Financial in a research report on Friday, April 19th. They issued a “hold” rating for the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their price target on Ellington Financial from $14.00 to $13.25 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 28th. StockNews.com downgraded Ellington Financial from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 17th. JMP Securities restated a “market outperform” rating and set a $14.50 price target on shares of Ellington Financial in a research note on Thursday, April 18th. Finally, BTIG Research cut their price target on Ellington Financial from $15.50 to $13.50 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 18th.

Ellington Financial Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:EFC opened at $11.55 on Thursday. Ellington Financial has a fifty-two week low of $10.88 and a fifty-two week high of $14.21. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $11.51 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $12.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 11.30, a quick ratio of 46.75 and a current ratio of 46.75. The firm has a market cap of $982.02 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.83 and a beta of 1.92.

Ellington Financial (NYSE:EFC) last issued its earnings results on Monday, February 26th. The financial services provider reported $0.40 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.41 by ($0.01). Ellington Financial had a return on equity of 11.36% and a net margin of 78.53%. The business had revenue of $27.99 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $30.77 million. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.42 EPS. On average, analysts expect that Ellington Financial will post 1.53 earnings per share for the current year.

Ellington Financial Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a monthly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 28th. Investors of record on Tuesday, April 30th will be paid a dividend of $0.13 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 29th. This represents a $1.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 13.51%. Ellington Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 173.34%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Global Retirement Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Ellington Financial during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC grew its stake in shares of Ellington Financial by 100.9% during the 4th quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 2,835 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 1,424 shares during the period. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Ellington Financial by 35.9% during the 4th quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 3,757 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $48,000 after acquiring an additional 992 shares during the period. Private Trust Co. NA grew its stake in shares of Ellington Financial by 42.8% during the 4th quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 4,334 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $55,000 after acquiring an additional 1,299 shares during the period. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC bought a new position in shares of Ellington Financial during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $102,000. 55.62% of the stock is currently owned by 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.