Ellington Financial (NYSE:EFC) Sees Unusually-High Trading Volume – Here’s What Happened

Ellington Financial Inc. (NYSE:EFC) saw unusually-strong trading volume on Tuesday . Approximately 2,688,840 shares changed hands during trading, an increase of 53% from the previous session’s volume of 1,752,579 shares.The stock last traded at $13.2460 and had previously closed at $13.86.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

EFC has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Zacks Research cut Ellington Financial from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, October 10th. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Ellington Financial in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Ellington Financial has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $14.55.

Ellington Financial Trading Down 3.5%

The business’s fifty day moving average price is $13.74 and its 200 day moving average price is $13.53. The company has a quick ratio of 50.60, a current ratio of 50.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 10.64. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.49 billion, a PE ratio of 9.98 and a beta of 0.95.

Ellington Financial (NYSE:EFC) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, November 5th. The financial services provider reported $0.53 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.44 by $0.09. Ellington Financial had a net margin of 89.04% and a return on equity of 14.55%. The firm had revenue of $242.08 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $121.99 million. As a group, analysts expect that Ellington Financial Inc. will post 1.38 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ellington Financial Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a monthly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 27th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 30th will be issued a $0.13 dividend. This represents a c) dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 11.7%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 30th. Ellington Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 116.42%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ellington Financial

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC grew its holdings in Ellington Financial by 15.1% during the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 179,803 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,384,000 after purchasing an additional 23,553 shares in the last quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue increased its position in shares of Ellington Financial by 12.1% during the second quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 56,305 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $730,000 after acquiring an additional 6,070 shares during the last quarter. GraniteShares Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Ellington Financial by 6.7% during the second quarter. GraniteShares Advisors LLC now owns 230,705 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,997,000 after acquiring an additional 14,421 shares during the last quarter. MAS Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Ellington Financial by 3.6% in the second quarter. MAS Advisors LLC now owns 22,928 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $298,000 after acquiring an additional 788 shares in the last quarter. Finally, KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS boosted its holdings in Ellington Financial by 25.6% in the second quarter. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS now owns 20,600 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $270,000 after purchasing an additional 4,200 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 55.62% of the company’s stock.

Ellington Financial Company Profile

Ellington Financial, Inc (NYSE: EFC) is a mortgage real estate investment trust (REIT) that focuses on generating attractive risk-adjusted returns through investments in residential and commercial mortgage-related assets. Established in 2013, the company is externally managed by Ellington Financial Management, L.P., a subsidiary of Ellington Management Group, an alternative asset management firm. EFC’s core strategy centers on actively acquiring and managing agency and non-agency residential mortgage-backed securities (MBS), mortgage servicing rights, residential whole loans, and other structured finance instruments, including asset-backed securities and commercial mortgage-backed securities (CMBS).

The company employs leverage and structured financing tools—such as repurchase agreements and secured credit facilities—to enhance portfolio yield while maintaining focus on risk mitigation.