Short Interest in Orchid Island Capital, Inc. (NYSE:ORC) Drops By 16.3%

Orchid Island Capital, Inc. (NYSE:ORC) saw a large drop in short interest in January. As of January 15th, there was short interest totalling 7,190,000 shares, a drop of 16.3% from the December 31st total of 8,590,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 2,100,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 3.4 days. Approximately 9.2% of the shares of the company are short sold.

Orchid Island Capital Stock Performance

Shares of ORC traded down $0.11 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $8.25. 5,053,387 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,022,804. The company has a market cap of $658.36 million, a PE ratio of 13.74 and a beta of 1.83. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $7.91 and its 200-day moving average is $7.99. Orchid Island Capital has a 52 week low of $7.41 and a 52 week high of $9.08.

Orchid Island Capital (NYSE:ORC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.05 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.03) by $0.08. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Orchid Island Capital will post 0.22 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Orchid Island Capital Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a monthly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 27th. Investors of record on Friday, January 31st will be paid a dividend of $0.12 per share. This represents a $1.44 annualized dividend and a yield of 17.47%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 31st. Orchid Island Capital’s payout ratio is presently 240.00%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, JMP Securities reiterated a “market perform” rating on shares of Orchid Island Capital in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd.

Institutional Trading of Orchid Island Capital

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. AQR Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Orchid Island Capital during the second quarter worth approximately $134,000. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company boosted its stake in shares of Orchid Island Capital by 7.4% in the second quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 20,521 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $171,000 after buying an additional 1,422 shares during the period. Cetera Investment Advisers boosted its stake in shares of Orchid Island Capital by 10.2% in the second quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 183,678 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $1,532,000 after buying an additional 17,029 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC bought a new stake in shares of Orchid Island Capital in the third quarter valued at approximately $218,000. Finally, Worth Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in Orchid Island Capital by 359.7% during the third quarter. Worth Asset Management LLC now owns 67,749 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $557,000 after purchasing an additional 53,011 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 32.74% of the company’s stock.

Orchid Island Capital Company Profile

Orchid Island Capital, Inc, a specialty finance company, invests in residential mortgage-backed securities (RMBS) in the United States. The company’s RMBS is backed by single-family residential mortgage loans, referred as Agency RMBS. Its portfolio includes traditional pass-through Agency RMBS, such as mortgage pass through certificates and collateralized mortgage obligations; and structured Agency RMBS comprising interest only securities, inverse interest only securities, and principal only securities.