HighTower Advisors LLC lessened its stake in MFA Financial, Inc. (NYSE:MFA – Free Report) by 15.4% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 23,009 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after selling 4,174 shares during the period. HighTower Advisors LLC’s holdings in MFA Financial were worth $234,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.
A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. increased its position in shares of MFA Financial by 11.0% during the fourth quarter. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. now owns 5,085,927 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $51,824,000 after acquiring an additional 502,840 shares during the period. Barclays PLC increased its holdings in MFA Financial by 902.9% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 374,481 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $4,764,000 after purchasing an additional 337,142 shares during the period. GraniteShares Advisors LLC purchased a new position in MFA Financial during the 4th quarter worth $2,484,000. Van ECK Associates Corp raised its position in MFA Financial by 20.3% during the 4th quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 919,603 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $9,371,000 after purchasing an additional 155,210 shares in the last quarter. Finally, State Street Corp lifted its holdings in shares of MFA Financial by 6.2% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 2,579,818 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $33,700,000 after buying an additional 151,321 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 65.28% of the company’s stock.
MFA Financial Stock Performance
Shares of MFA Financial stock opened at $10.14 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $1.04 billion, a PE ratio of 12.51 and a beta of 1.61. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $10.59 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $11.10. MFA Financial, Inc. has a one year low of $9.36 and a one year high of $13.45.
MFA Financial (NYSE:MFA – Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 19th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.38 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.40 by ($0.02). The firm had revenue of $50.80 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $58.06 million. MFA Financial had a return on equity of 9.61% and a net margin of 16.47%. On average, equities analysts predict that MFA Financial, Inc. will post 1.5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.
MFA Financial Increases Dividend
The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be issued a dividend of $0.36 per share. This represents a $1.44 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 14.21%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. This is a positive change from MFA Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.35. MFA Financial’s dividend payout ratio is currently 177.78%.
Analysts Set New Price Targets
MFA has been the topic of several research reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their price target on MFA Financial from $13.50 to $12.50 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 20th. JMP Securities cut their target price on shares of MFA Financial from $13.50 to $12.50 and set a “market outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Janney Montgomery Scott started coverage on shares of MFA Financial in a report on Thursday, January 2nd. They issued a “buy” rating and a $14.00 price target for the company. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded shares of MFA Financial from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, March 28th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, MFA Financial presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $13.70.
Check Out Our Latest Analysis on MFA Financial
MFA Financial Company Profile
(Free Report)
MFA Financial, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a real estate investment trust in the United States. It invests in residential mortgage securities, including non-agency mortgage-backed securities, agency MBS, and credit risk transfer securities; residential whole loans, including purchased performing loans, purchased credit deteriorated, and non-performing loans; and mortgage servicing rights related assets.
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