Ellington Financial Inc. (NYSE:EFC – Get Rating) was the target of unusually large options trading activity on Thursday. Stock investors bought 5,024 put options on the company. This represents an increase of 1,441% compared to the typical daily volume of 326 put options.
Institutional Inflows and Outflows
Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in EFC. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Ellington Financial by 126.5% during the 1st quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 1,359 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 759 shares during the last quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. purchased a new position in shares of Ellington Financial in the 2nd quarter valued at about $29,000. Captrust Financial Advisors acquired a new position in Ellington Financial during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $33,000. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC boosted its stake in shares of Ellington Financial by 49.4% during the third quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 3,690 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $42,000 after buying an additional 1,220 shares during the period. Finally, Private Trust Co. NA acquired a new position in shares of Ellington Financial during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $45,000. 54.02% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.
Ellington Financial Stock Performance
Shares of EFC stock traded down $0.04 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $12.93. 6,488 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 822,754. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.00, a quick ratio of 21.09 and a current ratio of 21.09. Ellington Financial has a fifty-two week low of $10.81 and a fifty-two week high of $18.13. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $13.31 and its 200-day moving average is $14.13.
Ellington Financial (NYSE:EFC – Get Rating) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, November 7th. The financial services provider reported $0.44 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.43 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $36.51 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $36.03 million. Ellington Financial had a negative net margin of 40.37% and a positive return on equity of 9.99%. On average, analysts expect that Ellington Financial will post 1.71 EPS for the current year.
Ellington Financial Announces Dividend
The company also recently announced a monthly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 25th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 30th will be paid a dividend of $0.15 per share. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 13.92%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, December 29th. Ellington Financial’s payout ratio is currently -151.26%.
Analyst Ratings Changes
EFC has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Credit Suisse Group dropped their price objective on Ellington Financial to $14.00 in a research note on Thursday, October 13th. JMP Securities lowered their price objective on shares of Ellington Financial from $16.50 to $15.00 and set a “market outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 20th. StockNews.com initiated coverage on shares of Ellington Financial in a report on Wednesday, October 12th. They issued a “sell” rating for the company. Maxim Group dropped their price objective on shares of Ellington Financial from $17.50 to $15.50 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 20th. Finally, Piper Sandler cut their price objective on shares of Ellington Financial from $17.50 to $15.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, October 3rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Ellington Financial has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $15.38.
Ellington Financial Company Profile
Ellington Financial Inc, through its subsidiary, Ellington Financial Operating Partnership LLC, acquires and manages mortgage-related, consumer-related, corporate-related, and other financial assets in the United States. The company acquires and manages residential mortgage-backed securities (RMBS) backed by prime jumbo, Alt-A, manufactured housing, and subprime residential mortgage loans; RMBS for which the principal and interest payments are guaranteed by the U.S.
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