Ellington Financial (NYSE:EFC) Now Covered by Jonestrading

Jonestrading began coverage on shares of Ellington Financial (NYSE:EFC) in a research report report published on Friday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage issued a hold rating on the financial services provider’s stock.

EFC has been the subject of a number of other research reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price objective on Ellington Financial from $14.00 to $13.25 and set an outperform rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 28th. JMP Securities reiterated a market outperform rating and set a $14.50 price objective on shares of Ellington Financial in a research report on Thursday, April 18th. StockNews.com cut Ellington Financial from a hold rating to a sell rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 17th. Finally, BTIG Research dropped their price objective on Ellington Financial from $15.50 to $13.50 and set a buy rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 18th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of Hold and a consensus price target of $13.95.

Ellington Financial Price Performance

Ellington Financial stock opened at $11.47 on Friday. Ellington Financial has a one year low of $10.88 and a one year high of $14.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 11.30, a quick ratio of 46.75 and a current ratio of 46.75. The business has a fifty day moving average of $11.51 and a two-hundred day moving average of $12.25. The company has a market cap of $975.64 million, a P/E ratio of 12.74 and a beta of 1.92.

Ellington Financial (NYSE:EFC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 26th. The financial services provider reported $0.40 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.41 by ($0.01). Ellington Financial had a net margin of 78.53% and a return on equity of 11.36%. The firm had revenue of $27.99 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $30.77 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.42 EPS. As a group, analysts predict that Ellington Financial will post 1.53 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ellington Financial Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a monthly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 28th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, April 30th will be issued a $0.13 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 29th. This represents a $1.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 13.60%. Ellington Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 173.34%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC boosted its position in Ellington Financial by 100.9% during the 4th quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 2,835 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $36,000 after acquiring an additional 1,424 shares during the period. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Ellington Financial by 35.9% in the fourth quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 3,757 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $48,000 after buying an additional 992 shares during the period. Private Trust Co. NA lifted its holdings in shares of Ellington Financial by 42.8% in the fourth quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 4,334 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $55,000 after buying an additional 1,299 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Ellington Financial in the fourth quarter valued at $102,000. Finally, Portside Wealth Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Ellington Financial by 8.3% in the third quarter. Portside Wealth Group LLC now owns 10,903 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $137,000 after buying an additional 835 shares during the period. 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.