Renaissance Technologies LLC Increases Stake in MFA Financial, Inc. $MFA

Renaissance Technologies LLC raised its holdings in MFA Financial, Inc. (NYSE:MFA) by 245.2% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 777,025 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after buying an additional 551,927 shares during the period. Renaissance Technologies LLC owned approximately 0.76% of MFA Financial worth $7,444,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. lifted its stake in MFA Financial by 53.1% in the second quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. now owns 2,820,393 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $26,681,000 after acquiring an additional 977,820 shares during the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP raised its holdings in MFA Financial by 152.8% during the second quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 1,022,065 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $9,669,000 after purchasing an additional 617,759 shares during the last quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP boosted its position in MFA Financial by 112.1% during the third quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP now owns 778,019 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $7,150,000 after purchasing an additional 411,128 shares in the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. grew its holdings in MFA Financial by 75.2% in the fourth quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 718,940 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $6,693,000 after purchasing an additional 308,491 shares during the last quarter. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in MFA Financial by 43.4% in the fourth quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 993,475 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $9,249,000 after purchasing an additional 300,550 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.28% of the company’s stock.

MFA Financial Price Performance

NYSE MFA opened at $9.16 on Tuesday. The company’s fifty day moving average is $9.39 and its two-hundred day moving average is $9.71. The firm has a market capitalization of $931.16 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.53 and a beta of 1.42. MFA Financial, Inc. has a 52-week low of $8.78 and a 52-week high of $10.56.

MFA Financial (NYSE:MFA) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.30 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.31 by ($0.01). MFA Financial had a return on equity of 6.86% and a net margin of 17.80%.The business had revenue of $43.30 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $67.52 million. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.29 EPS.

MFA Financial Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, July 31st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, June 30th were issued a dividend of $0.36 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, June 30th. This represents a $1.44 annualized dividend and a yield of 15.7%. MFA Financial’s dividend payout ratio is currently 165.52%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently commented on MFA shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price objective on MFA Financial from $11.00 to $10.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. BTIG Research raised shares of MFA Financial from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $10.50 price target on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, June 17th. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of MFA Financial from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a report on Monday, July 6th. Royal Bank Of Canada cut their price objective on shares of MFA Financial from $11.00 to $10.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, June 3rd. Finally, Citizens Jmp increased their price target on MFA Financial from $11.00 to $11.50 and gave the stock a “market outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, May 4th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, MFA Financial has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $10.45.

MFA Financial Profile

MFA Financial, Inc, headquartered in New York City, is a real estate investment trust that specializes in investing in residential mortgage loans and mortgage-related securities. The company’s primary objective is to generate attractive risk-adjusted returns through net interest income and capital appreciation. As a mortgage REIT, MFA Financial focuses on constructing a diversified portfolio of agency and non-agency residential mortgage assets, leveraging its expertise in acquiring, financing and servicing mortgage products.

MFA Financial’s investment portfolio encompasses a wide range of mortgage instruments, including adjustable-rate and fixed-rate mortgage loans, interest-only securities, and agency mortgage-backed securities guaranteed by government-sponsored entities.