Ellington Financial Inc. (NYSE:EFC) Given Average Rating of “Hold” by Analysts

Ellington Financial Inc. (NYSE:EFC) has received a consensus rating of “Hold” from the five research firms that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat reports. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and one has given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month price objective among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $13.8750.

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Wall Street Zen raised Ellington Financial from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, May 9th. Zacks Research lowered Ellington Financial from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, July 13th. Weiss Ratings raised Ellington Financial from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 14th. Finally, BTIG Research cut shares of Ellington Financial from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 17th.

Ellington Financial Trading Up 0.0%

Shares of NYSE EFC opened at $13.29 on Wednesday. Ellington Financial has a 1 year low of $11.27 and a 1 year high of $14.12. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 10.18, a current ratio of 42.65 and a quick ratio of 42.65. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $13.52 and a 200 day moving average of $13.04. The stock has a market cap of $1.67 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.00 and a beta of 0.94.

Ellington Financial (NYSE:EFC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 5th. The financial services provider reported $0.55 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.42 by $0.13. Ellington Financial had a net margin of 72.08% and a return on equity of 15.81%. The business had revenue of $188.83 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $114.09 million. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Ellington Financial will post 1.95 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ellington Financial Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a monthly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, July 31st will be issued a $0.13 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, July 31st. This represents a c) annualized dividend and a yield of 11.7%. Ellington Financial’s payout ratio is 93.98%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in EFC. Sound Income Strategies LLC increased its position in shares of Ellington Financial by 267.4% during the first quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 2,208 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 1,607 shares in the last quarter. Daytona Street Capital LLC purchased a new position in Ellington Financial in the 4th quarter worth approximately $34,000. REAP Financial Group LLC bought a new position in Ellington Financial in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Danske Bank A S bought a new position in Ellington Financial in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $44,000. Finally, Huntington National Bank boosted its stake in Ellington Financial by 35.3% during the 4th quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 4,136 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $56,000 after purchasing an additional 1,078 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 55.62% of the company’s stock.

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.