Ellington Financial (NYSE:EFC) Earns “Market Outperform” Rating from JMP Securities

JMP Securities reissued their market outperform rating on shares of Ellington Financial (NYSE:EFC) in a report released on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a $14.00 price target on the financial services provider’s stock.

Separately, B. Riley raised shares of Ellington Financial to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, three have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $13.58.

Ellington Financial Trading Down 0.3 %

NYSE:EFC opened at $12.45 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $1.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.50 and a beta of 1.97. Ellington Financial has a one year low of $10.88 and a one year high of $13.46. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 10.87, a quick ratio of 37.04 and a current ratio of 37.04. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $12.29 and its 200 day simple moving average is $12.61.

Ellington Financial (NYSE:EFC) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The financial services provider reported $0.40 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.36 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $33.63 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $37.95 million. Ellington Financial had a return on equity of 10.26% and a net margin of 106.40%. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.33 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Ellington Financial will post 1.38 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ellington Financial Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a monthly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, February 25th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 31st will be paid a dividend of $0.13 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 31st. This represents a $1.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 12.53%. Ellington Financial’s payout ratio is 119.08%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. McIlrath & Eck LLC bought a new position in Ellington Financial in the third quarter worth about $62,000. Prospera Private Wealth LLC bought a new position in shares of Ellington Financial during the third quarter worth about $68,000. Members Trust Co acquired a new stake in shares of Ellington Financial in the 3rd quarter worth about $129,000. Atom Investors LP bought a new stake in Ellington Financial in the 3rd quarter valued at about $130,000. Finally, Creative Planning acquired a new position in Ellington Financial during the 3rd quarter valued at about $141,000. 55.62% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Ellington Financial

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 mortgage; RMBS for which the principal and interest payments are guaranteed by the U.S.