Piper Sandler Cuts Ellington Financial (NYSE:EFC) Price Target to $14.50

Ellington Financial (NYSE:EFC) had its target price trimmed by Piper Sandler from $15.00 to $14.50 in a research note released on Tuesday morning,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an overweight rating on the financial services provider’s stock.

A number of other research analysts also recently commented on the stock. B. Riley lifted their price objective on shares of Ellington Financial from $15.00 to $16.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 15th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on Ellington Financial from $13.75 to $14.50 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, March 3rd. Finally, UBS Group restated a “neutral” rating on shares of Ellington Financial in a research note on Wednesday, May 14th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Ellington Financial presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $14.75.

Ellington Financial Price Performance

NYSE:EFC opened at $13.06 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $1.23 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.26 and a beta of 0.98. Ellington Financial has a 52-week low of $11.12 and a 52-week high of $14.40. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $12.88 and its 200 day simple moving average is $12.75. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 11.11, a quick ratio of 42.26 and a current ratio of 42.26.

Ellington Financial (NYSE:EFC) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The financial services provider reported $0.39 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.38 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $82.91 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $107.06 million. Ellington Financial had a net margin of 101.59% and a return on equity of 12.06%. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Ellington Financial will post 1.38 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ellington Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a monthly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 31st. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 30th will be given a $0.13 dividend. This represents a $1.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 11.95%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 30th. Ellington Financial’s payout ratio is presently 110.64%.

Institutional Trading of Ellington Financial

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of EFC. Larson Financial Group LLC grew its stake in Ellington Financial by 18,200.0% in the 4th quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 2,562 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 2,548 shares during the last quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Ellington Financial by 162.3% during the fourth quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 2,602 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 1,610 shares during the period. Sterling Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Ellington Financial by 814.9% in the fourth quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 2,644 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 2,355 shares during the last quarter. AlphaQuest LLC bought a new position in shares of Ellington Financial during the fourth quarter worth approximately $37,000. Finally, State of Wyoming bought a new position in shares of Ellington Financial during the fourth quarter worth approximately $56,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 55.62% of the company’s stock.

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.