Ellington Financial (NYSE:EFC) Stock Rating Lowered by Wall Street Zen

Ellington Financial (NYSE:EFC) was downgraded by Wall Street Zen from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report released on Saturday, Wall Street Zen reports.

Several other equities analysts have also commented on the stock. UBS Group raised their target price on shares of Ellington Financial from $14.00 to $14.50 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 19th. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Ellington Financial from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 8th. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Ellington Financial from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, July 13th. Piper Sandler reduced their price target on shares of Ellington Financial from $15.00 to $14.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, October 9th. Finally, JonesTrading reduced their price target on shares of Ellington Financial from $14.50 to $13.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $13.83.

Ellington Financial Stock Performance

EFC opened at $11.29 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $1.46 billion, a P/E ratio of 6.80 and a beta of 1.01. Ellington Financial has a 52-week low of $11.15 and a 52-week high of $14.12. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 10.57, a quick ratio of 52.06 and a current ratio of 45.99. The business’s fifty day moving average is $12.17 and its 200-day moving average is $12.84.

Ellington Financial (NYSE:EFC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 4th. The financial services provider reported $0.45 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.47 by ($0.02). Ellington Financial had a net margin of 41.95% and a return on equity of 15.83%. The company had revenue of $117.72 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $125.83 million. Sell-side analysts expect that Ellington Financial will post 2.07 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new stake in Ellington Financial during the 2nd quarter worth about $284,144,000. State Street Corp raised its position in shares of Ellington Financial by 7.5% in the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 4,952,930 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $68,043,000 after acquiring an additional 347,567 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp bought a new position in shares of Ellington Financial in the 2nd quarter worth about $11,133,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Ellington Financial by 18.5% in the 1st quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 605,681 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $7,177,000 after acquiring an additional 94,625 shares in the last quarter. Finally, First Trust Advisors LP lifted its stake in shares of Ellington Financial by 263.7% in the 1st quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 593,740 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $7,036,000 after purchasing an additional 430,477 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 55.62% of the company’s stock.

Trending Headlines about Ellington Financial

Here are the key news stories impacting Ellington Financial this week:

• Positive Sentiment: The board declared a monthly dividend of $0.13 per share, payable December 31 to shareholders of record November 30. That equates to $1.56 annualized and a reported yield of 13.7%, supporting EFC’s appeal to income-focused investors. Dividend announcement
• Neutral Sentiment: Ellington is pursuing growth in non-qualified mortgage servicing through a new acquisition. The strategy could expand its servicing business, though the supplied report does not detail the deal’s terms or expected financial contribution. Non-QM servicing acquisition article
• Negative Sentiment: Q3 earnings were $0.45 per share versus the $0.47 consensus, while revenue of $117.72 million also fell short of the $125.83 million estimate. The modest misses may have pressured the shares. Q3 results
• Negative Sentiment: JonesTrading cut its price target from $14.50 to $13.00, tempering its outlook, although it maintained a Buy rating. The new target still implies potential upside from the cited $11.29 price. JonesTrading rating information

Ellington Financial Company Profile

Ellington Financial Inc is a real estate investment trust (REIT) that acquires, invests in and manages a portfolio of mortgage-related and other financial assets. The company focuses primarily on residential and commercial mortgage loans, mortgage-backed securities and related investments.

Its investment activities may include agency and non-agency residential mortgage-backed securities, commercial mortgage-backed securities, residential and commercial mortgage loans, mortgage servicing rights and consumer loans.