Van ECK Associates Corp Boosts Stake in ARMOUR Residential REIT, Inc. $ARR

Van ECK Associates Corp grew its position in shares of ARMOUR Residential REIT, Inc. (NYSE:ARR) by 34.6% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 976,424 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after acquiring an additional 250,879 shares during the quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp owned about 0.87% of ARMOUR Residential REIT worth $14,588,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of ARMOUR Residential REIT by 120.8% during the 3rd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 2,893 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $43,000 after purchasing an additional 1,583 shares during the period. Allworth Financial LP raised its holdings in ARMOUR Residential REIT by 139.1% in the second quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 2,675 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $45,000 after buying an additional 1,556 shares during the period. State of Wyoming purchased a new position in ARMOUR Residential REIT in the third quarter valued at approximately $51,000. Russell Investments Group Ltd. lifted its position in ARMOUR Residential REIT by 80.9% during the second quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 3,289 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $55,000 after buying an additional 1,471 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in ARMOUR Residential REIT during the second quarter valued at approximately $55,000. 54.17% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

ARMOUR Residential REIT Stock Down 1.3%

Shares of NYSE ARR traded down $0.23 during trading on Friday, reaching $17.19. 1,009,741 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,747,641. The company has a market capitalization of $2.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.29 and a beta of 1.44. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $18.05 and its 200 day moving average price is $16.82. ARMOUR Residential REIT, Inc. has a twelve month low of $13.18 and a twelve month high of $19.31.

ARMOUR Residential REIT (NYSE:ARR) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 18th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.71 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.74 by ($0.03). ARMOUR Residential REIT had a net margin of 40.31% and a return on equity of 15.30%. The firm had revenue of $236.50 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $62.34 million. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that ARMOUR Residential REIT, Inc. will post 3.8 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

ARMOUR Residential REIT Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a monthly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 16th will be given a dividend of $0.24 per share. This represents a c) dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 16.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 16th. ARMOUR Residential REIT’s payout ratio is presently 105.49%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Robert C. Hain sold 6,833 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $18.06, for a total value of $123,403.98. Following the transaction, the director owned 1,010 shares in the company, valued at approximately $18,240.60. The trade was a 87.12% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 0.35% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ARR has been the subject of several recent research reports. Zacks Research lowered shares of ARMOUR Residential REIT from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 19th. Wall Street Zen cut shares of ARMOUR Residential REIT from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Saturday, February 21st. JonesTrading lowered their price target on ARMOUR Residential REIT from $20.50 to $20.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 20th. Compass Point started coverage on ARMOUR Residential REIT in a research report on Monday, December 15th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $18.50 price objective on the stock. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded ARMOUR Residential REIT from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research note on Friday, March 6th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $18.17.

ARMOUR Residential REIT Company Profile

ARMOUR Residential REIT (NYSE:ARR) is a mortgage real estate investment trust that was formed in 2008 to acquire and manage a portfolio of residential mortgage-backed securities (RMBS). The company’s investments are primarily agency-sponsored and agency-guaranteed RMBS issued by U.S. government-sponsored enterprises, along with credit risk transfer securities and select non-agency residential and multifamily RMBS. By focusing on high-quality mortgage assets, ARMOUR Residential REIT seeks to generate stable income and preserve capital through diversified exposure to the U.S.