Brokerages Set Annaly Capital Management, Inc. (NYSE:NLY) Target Price at $21.38

Shares of Annaly Capital Management, Inc. (NYSE:NLY) have been given an average rating of “Moderate Buy” by the nine research firms that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and seven have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month price target among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $21.50.

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on NLY shares. Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of Annaly Capital Management from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $19.00 to $23.00 in a report on Friday, September 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on Annaly Capital Management from $21.00 to $22.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday. StockNews.com downgraded Annaly Capital Management from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, July 25th. Compass Point increased their price target on shares of Annaly Capital Management from $22.00 to $23.50 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, July 26th. Finally, JMP Securities restated a “market perform” rating on shares of Annaly Capital Management in a research note on Wednesday, August 28th.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO David L. Finkelstein sold 50,000 shares of Annaly Capital Management stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $20.05, for a total value of $1,002,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 612,469 shares in the company, valued at $12,280,003.45. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders own 0.21% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Annaly Capital Management

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of NLY. Rise Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Annaly Capital Management in the 1st quarter valued at $29,000. UMB Bank n.a. grew its position in shares of Annaly Capital Management by 70.2% in the third quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 1,568 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 647 shares during the period. Quarry LP purchased a new stake in shares of Annaly Capital Management during the second quarter worth about $36,000. Register Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Annaly Capital Management during the 1st quarter worth about $37,000. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Annaly Capital Management by 107.5% in the 1st quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 2,077 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $39,000 after buying an additional 1,076 shares in the last quarter. 51.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Annaly Capital Management Stock Performance

Annaly Capital Management stock opened at $20.28 on Wednesday. Annaly Capital Management has a one year low of $14.52 and a one year high of $21.11. The stock has a market cap of $10.15 billion, a PE ratio of -20.91 and a beta of 1.51. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $20.11 and a two-hundred day moving average of $19.73.

Annaly Capital Management (NYSE:NLY) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 24th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.68 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.66 by $0.02. Annaly Capital Management had a negative net margin of 12.02% and a positive return on equity of 15.24%. The company had revenue of $1.18 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $318.00 million. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.72 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Annaly Capital Management will post 2.66 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Annaly Capital Management Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 31st. Investors of record on Monday, September 30th will be given a dividend of $0.65 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 30th. This represents a $2.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 12.82%. Annaly Capital Management’s dividend payout ratio is presently -268.04%.

About Annaly Capital Management

Annaly Capital Management, Inc, a diversified capital manager, engages in mortgage finance. The company invests in agency mortgage-backed securities collateralized by residential mortgages; non-agency residential whole loans and securitized products within the residential and commercial markets; mortgage servicing rights; agency commercial mortgage-backed securities; to-be-announced forward contracts; residential mortgage loans; and agency or private label credit risk transfer securities.