Ellington Financial Inc. (NYSE:EFC) Declares $0.13 Monthly Dividend

Ellington Financial Inc. (NYSE:EFC) announced a monthly dividend on Wednesday, May 8th, Wall Street Journal reports. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 31st will be paid a dividend of 0.13 per share by the financial services provider on Tuesday, June 25th. This represents a $1.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 13.24%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 31st.

Ellington Financial has increased its dividend by an average of 12.7% per year over the last three years and has increased its dividend annually for the last 1 consecutive years. Ellington Financial has a payout ratio of 91.2% indicating that its dividend is currently covered by earnings, but may not be in the future if the company’s earnings fall. Equities research analysts expect Ellington Financial to earn $1.74 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $1.56 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 89.7%.

Ellington Financial Stock Up 1.4 %

Shares of NYSE EFC traded up $0.16 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $11.78. The stock had a trading volume of 1,187,931 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,063,392. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 11.30, a current ratio of 46.75 and a quick ratio of 46.75. The company has a market capitalization of $1.00 billion, a PE ratio of 12.91 and a beta of 1.91. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $11.44 and a two-hundred day moving average of $12.18. Ellington Financial has a 12 month low of $10.88 and a 12 month high of $14.21.

Ellington Financial (NYSE:EFC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 26th. The financial services provider reported $0.40 earnings per share (EPS) 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 quarter last year, the business posted $0.42 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Ellington Financial will post 1.53 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have issued reports on the stock. BTIG Research cut their price target on shares of Ellington Financial from $15.50 to $13.50 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 18th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price target on shares of Ellington Financial from $14.00 to $13.25 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 28th. StockNews.com upgraded Ellington Financial from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, May 2nd. JMP Securities reaffirmed a “market outperform” rating and issued a $14.50 price objective on shares of Ellington Financial in a report on Thursday, April 18th. Finally, Jonestrading initiated coverage on Ellington Financial in a report on Friday, April 19th. They issued a “hold” rating on the stock. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $13.95.

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.