Orchid Island Capital (NYSE:ORC) Hits New 52-Week Low – Here’s What Happened

Shares of Orchid Island Capital, Inc. (NYSE:ORC) reached a new 52-week low during trading on Thursday . The stock traded as low as $5.96 and last traded at $6.0550, with a volume of 6266902 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $6.09.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on ORC shares. Weiss Ratings upgraded Orchid Island Capital from a “sell (d)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 15th. BTIG Research initiated coverage on shares of Orchid Island Capital in a research report on Thursday, July 9th. They issued a “neutral” rating for the company. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Reduce” and a consensus price target of $7.50.

Orchid Island Capital Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34, a quick ratio of 509.34 and a current ratio of 509.34. The company has a market capitalization of $1.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 4.07 and a beta of 1.55. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $6.57 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $6.82.

Orchid Island Capital (NYSE:ORC) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, July 23rd. The real estate investment trust reported $0.26 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.28 by ($0.02). The company had revenue of $59.97 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $74.26 million.

Orchid Island Capital Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a monthly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 29th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, September 30th will be given a dividend of $0.10 per share. This represents a c) dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 19.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, September 30th. Orchid Island Capital’s payout ratio is presently 81.08%.

Orchid Island Capital declared that its board has approved a share buyback plan on Monday, June 22nd that authorizes the company to buyback 25,000,000,000,000 outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the real estate investment trust to purchase up to 12.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are often a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Orchid Island Capital

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd boosted its holdings in shares of Orchid Island Capital by 425.8% during the first quarter. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd now owns 579,236 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $4,072,000 after purchasing an additional 469,076 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp purchased a new stake in shares of Orchid Island Capital during the second quarter worth $3,899,000. Cetera Investment Advisers boosted its holdings in Orchid Island Capital by 12.6% in the first quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 431,038 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $3,030,000 after purchasing an additional 48,369 shares in the last quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership acquired a new position in Orchid Island Capital during the first quarter worth $2,894,000. Finally, Swiss National Bank increased its position in Orchid Island Capital by 26.0% during the first quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 362,800 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $2,550,000 after buying an additional 74,800 shares during the last quarter. 32.74% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Orchid Island Capital

Orchid Island Capital, Inc is a real estate investment trust (REIT) focused on investing in residential mortgage-backed securities (RMBS). Its portfolio primarily consists of agency RMBS, which are securities issued or guaranteed by U.S. government-sponsored entities such as Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, or by government agencies such as Ginnie Mae.

The company seeks to generate income from its investments and finances portions of its portfolio through borrowings, including repurchase agreements.