M&T Bank Corp Purchases 55,622 Shares of Ellington Financial Inc. $EFC

M&T Bank Corp grew its position in shares of Ellington Financial Inc. (NYSE:EFC) by 453.1% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 67,899 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 55,622 shares during the period. M&T Bank Corp owned approximately 0.06% of Ellington Financial worth $922,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Ellington Financial by 7.2% in the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 6,653,590 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $86,364,000 after purchasing an additional 449,074 shares during the period. Dana Investment Advisors Inc. bought a new position in shares of Ellington Financial in the third quarter worth $4,997,000. Millennium Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Ellington Financial in the third quarter worth $4,941,000. Invesco Ltd. increased its position in shares of Ellington Financial by 17.6% in the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 2,218,506 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $28,796,000 after purchasing an additional 331,934 shares during the period. Finally, Dark Forest Capital Management LP bought a new position in shares of Ellington Financial in the third quarter worth $3,718,000. Institutional investors own 55.62% of the company’s stock.

Ellington Financial Stock Up 0.6%

Shares of NYSE EFC opened at $13.27 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 11.02, a quick ratio of 47.25 and a current ratio of 47.25. Ellington Financial Inc. has a 52 week low of $11.27 and a 52 week high of $14.12. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.65 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.78 and a beta of 0.94. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $12.31 and its 200 day moving average is $13.11.

Ellington Financial (NYSE:EFC) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 25th. The financial services provider reported $0.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.44 by $0.03. Ellington Financial had a return on equity of 14.62% and a net margin of 53.10%.The firm had revenue of $96.44 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $132.07 million. Sell-side analysts forecast that Ellington Financial Inc. will post 1.87 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ellington Financial Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a monthly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 29th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 30th will be given a $0.13 dividend. This represents a c) dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 11.8%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 30th. Ellington Financial’s payout ratio is currently 126.83%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently commented on EFC. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Ellington Financial in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. Wall Street Zen cut Ellington Financial from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Saturday, March 7th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $14.56.

About Ellington Financial

Ellington Financial, Inc (NYSE: EFC) is a mortgage real estate investment trust (REIT) that focuses on generating attractive risk-adjusted returns through investments in residential and commercial mortgage-related assets. Established in 2013, the company is externally managed by Ellington Financial Management, L.P., a subsidiary of Ellington Management Group, an alternative asset management firm. EFC’s core strategy centers on actively acquiring and managing agency and non-agency residential mortgage-backed securities (MBS), mortgage servicing rights, residential whole loans, and other structured finance instruments, including asset-backed securities and commercial mortgage-backed securities (CMBS).

The company employs leverage and structured financing tools—such as repurchase agreements and secured credit facilities—to enhance portfolio yield while maintaining focus on risk mitigation.