MFA Financial, Inc. (NYSE:MFA) Given Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Analysts

Shares of MFA Financial, Inc. (NYSE:MFA) have earned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the eight analysts that are presently covering the company, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 12-month price target among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $10.45.

A number of analysts have weighed in on the company. Royal Bank Of Canada lowered their target price on MFA Financial from $11.00 to $10.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, June 3rd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their target price on MFA Financial from $11.00 to $10.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of MFA Financial in a report on Wednesday, April 15th. Citizens Jmp upped their target price on MFA Financial from $11.00 to $11.50 and gave the stock a “market outperform” rating in a report on Monday, May 4th. Finally, BTIG Research upgraded MFA Financial from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $10.50 target price for the company in a report on Wednesday.

Institutional Trading of MFA Financial

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. lifted its holdings in shares of MFA Financial by 53.1% during the 2nd quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. now owns 2,820,393 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $26,681,000 after purchasing an additional 977,820 shares during the last quarter. Wolverine Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of MFA Financial by 9.2% during the 4th quarter. Wolverine Asset Management LLC now owns 1,653,062 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $15,390,000 after purchasing an additional 139,559 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of MFA Financial by 9.2% during the 2nd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,647,612 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $15,586,000 after purchasing an additional 139,156 shares during the last quarter. Citigroup Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of MFA Financial by 440.1% during the 3rd quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 1,345,561 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $12,366,000 after purchasing an additional 1,096,443 shares during the last quarter. Finally, MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of MFA Financial by 6.7% during the 3rd quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 1,286,163 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $11,820,000 after purchasing an additional 80,900 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 65.28% of the company’s stock.

MFA Financial Stock Up 0.1%

MFA Financial stock opened at $9.39 on Thursday. The business has a fifty day moving average of $9.69 and a two-hundred day moving average of $9.75. The firm has a market cap of $954.13 million, a P/E ratio of 10.79 and a beta of 1.43. MFA Financial has a twelve month low of $8.78 and a twelve month high of $10.56.

MFA Financial (NYSE:MFA) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.30 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.31 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $43.31 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $67.52 million. MFA Financial had a return on equity of 6.86% and a net margin of 17.80%.During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.29 EPS.

MFA Financial Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 31st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 30th will be issued a dividend of $0.36 per share. This represents a $1.44 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 15.3%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, June 30th. MFA Financial’s dividend payout ratio is currently 165.52%.

MFA Financial Company Profile

MFA Financial, Inc, headquartered in New York City, is a real estate investment trust that specializes in investing in residential mortgage loans and mortgage-related securities. The company’s primary objective is to generate attractive risk-adjusted returns through net interest income and capital appreciation. As a mortgage REIT, MFA Financial focuses on constructing a diversified portfolio of agency and non-agency residential mortgage assets, leveraging its expertise in acquiring, financing and servicing mortgage products.

MFA Financial’s investment portfolio encompasses a wide range of mortgage instruments, including adjustable-rate and fixed-rate mortgage loans, interest-only securities, and agency mortgage-backed securities guaranteed by government-sponsored entities.