Analysts Set ARMOUR Residential REIT, Inc. (NYSE:ARR) Price Target at $18.50

Shares of ARMOUR Residential REIT, Inc. (NYSE:ARR) have received a consensus rating of “Hold” from the five brokerages that are presently covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, two have given a hold recommendation and two have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 1 year price target among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $18.50.

ARR has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Zacks Research upgraded ARMOUR Residential REIT from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 21st. Weiss Ratings downgraded ARMOUR Residential REIT from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 19th.

ARMOUR Residential REIT Stock Up 0.1%

ARR stock opened at $15.85 on Friday. ARMOUR Residential REIT has a twelve month low of $13.98 and a twelve month high of $19.31. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 4.26 and a beta of 1.36. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $16.50 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $16.93.

ARMOUR Residential REIT (NYSE:ARR) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 22nd. The real estate investment trust reported $0.72 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.72. ARMOUR Residential REIT had a net margin of 44.90% and a return on equity of 15.10%. The company had revenue of $113.29 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $111.98 million. As a group, equities research analysts expect that ARMOUR Residential REIT will post 2.93 EPS for the current year.

ARMOUR Residential REIT Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a monthly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 29th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 15th will be paid a $0.24 dividend. This represents a c) dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 18.2%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 15th. ARMOUR Residential REIT’s dividend payout ratio is currently 77.42%.

Insider Buying and Selling at ARMOUR Residential REIT

In related news, Chairman Daniel Staton sold 35,583 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $15.86, for a total value of $564,346.38. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.19% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On ARMOUR Residential REIT

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. IFP Advisors Inc increased its position in ARMOUR Residential REIT by 576.2% during the 2nd quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 1,420 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 1,210 shares during the period. Quarry LP increased its holdings in ARMOUR Residential REIT by 620.6% during the third quarter. Quarry LP now owns 1,823 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 1,570 shares during the period. Allworth Financial LP increased its holdings in ARMOUR Residential REIT by 40.7% during the fourth quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 2,369 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $42,000 after buying an additional 685 shares during the period. Danske Bank A S bought a new position in ARMOUR Residential REIT in the third quarter worth approximately $42,000. Finally, McIlrath & Eck LLC raised its stake in ARMOUR Residential REIT by 161.2% in the first quarter. McIlrath & Eck LLC now owns 3,129 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $52,000 after buying an additional 1,931 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 54.17% of the company’s stock.

About ARMOUR Residential REIT

ARMOUR Residential REIT, Inc is a real estate investment trust that invests primarily in residential mortgage-backed securities (RMBS). Its portfolio is focused mainly on securities issued or guaranteed by government-sponsored enterprises and U.S. government agencies, including Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and Ginnie Mae.

The company seeks to generate income from its investment portfolio and finances its activities through arrangements such as repurchase agreements. ARMOUR also uses interest-rate hedging strategies and other financial instruments to manage exposure to changing interest rates, financing costs and market conditions.

ARMOUR Residential REIT was organized in 2007 and is externally managed by ARMOUR Capital Management LP.