Redwood Trust (NYSE:RWT) Downgraded by Zacks Research to “Strong Sell”

Redwood Trust (NYSE:RWT) was downgraded by equities research analysts at Zacks Research from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report issued on Wednesday, Zacks reports.

Other analysts also recently issued reports about the company. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on Redwood Trust from $7.00 to $6.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 29th. JonesTrading decreased their target price on Redwood Trust from $6.25 to $6.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, July 28th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their target price on Redwood Trust from $5.50 to $4.75 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, September 14th. UBS Group lowered their target price on Redwood Trust from $7.00 to $6.50 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, August 21st. Finally, BTIG Research lowered their target price on Redwood Trust from $6.00 to $5.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, October 6th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $5.25.

Redwood Trust Stock Up 4.9%

NYSE RWT opened at $3.10 on Wednesday. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $4.10 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $4.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 31.69, a current ratio of 67.49 and a quick ratio of 67.49. Redwood Trust has a fifty-two week low of $2.91 and a fifty-two week high of $6.97. The stock has a market capitalization of $388.76 million, a PE ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 1.45.

Redwood Trust (NYSE:RWT) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, July 28th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.25 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.23 by $0.02. Redwood Trust had a return on equity of 16.02% and a net margin of 0.42%. The firm had revenue of $56.01 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $89.45 million. Equities analysts expect that Redwood Trust will post 1.01 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Redwood Trust

In other news, Director Greg H. Kubicek purchased 50,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 15th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $3.85 per share, for a total transaction of $192,500.00. Following the purchase, the director owned 127,185 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $489,662.25. The trade was a 64.78% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CFO Brooke Carillo acquired 26,065 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 15th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $3.85 per share, for a total transaction of $100,350.25. Following the acquisition, the chief financial officer owned 140,481 shares in the company, valued at $540,851.85. This represents a 22.78% increase in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have purchased a total of 244,171 shares of company stock valued at $948,402 over the last three months. 3.30% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Redwood Trust

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Bank of America Corp DE acquired a new stake in shares of Redwood Trust during the second quarter valued at about $2,032,000. Legal & General Group Plc bought a new position in Redwood Trust in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $1,349,000. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC raised its holdings in Redwood Trust by 7,932.1% in the 2nd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 265,059 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $1,256,000 after buying an additional 261,759 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp raised its holdings in Redwood Trust by 5.1% in the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 5,216,721 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $24,727,000 after buying an additional 254,399 shares during the last quarter. Finally, VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al acquired a new stake in Redwood Trust during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $990,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.34% of the company’s stock.

About Redwood Trust

Redwood Trust, Inc (NYSE: RWT) is a specialty finance company focused on housing credit and residential real estate finance. Organized as a real estate investment trust, the company invests in and manages residential credit assets, including mortgage loans and mortgage-related securities, with an emphasis on assets that are not typically financed through traditional government-sponsored mortgage programs.

Redwood operates through several business platforms. Its residential mortgage banking activities include acquiring and financing prime jumbo loans and other residential mortgages, which may be held for investment or placed into private-label securitizations.