Raymond James & Associates Sells 1,829 Shares of Ellington Financial Inc. (NYSE:EFC)

Raymond James & Associates trimmed its holdings in shares of Ellington Financial Inc. (NYSE:EFC) by 13.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 11,698 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 1,829 shares during the quarter. Raymond James & Associates’ holdings in Ellington Financial were worth $149,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Portside Wealth Group LLC grew its stake 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 worth $137,000 after purchasing an additional 835 shares during the last quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Ellington Financial by 2.4% in the 3rd quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 43,174 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $538,000 after buying an additional 996 shares during the last quarter. Optimum Investment Advisors raised its position in shares of Ellington Financial by 8.4% during the fourth quarter. Optimum Investment Advisors now owns 12,900 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $164,000 after acquiring an additional 1,000 shares during the last quarter. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC lifted its stake in shares of Ellington Financial by 7.4% in the third quarter. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC now owns 18,800 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $234,000 after acquiring an additional 1,300 shares during the period. Finally, Commonwealth Equity Services LLC boosted its holdings in Ellington Financial by 6.5% in the third quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 22,775 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $284,000 after acquiring an additional 1,398 shares during the last quarter. 55.62% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. JMP Securities restated a “market outperform” rating and issued a $14.50 price target on shares of Ellington Financial in a research report on Thursday, April 18th. BTIG Research cut their price target on shares of Ellington Financial from $15.50 to $13.50 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 18th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered 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. Jonestrading started coverage on Ellington Financial in a research note on Friday, April 19th. They set a “hold” rating for the company. Finally, StockNews.com lowered Ellington Financial from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 17th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $13.95.

Ellington Financial Stock Performance

Shares of Ellington Financial stock opened at $11.61 on Thursday. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $11.47 and a 200 day simple moving average of $12.21. The firm has a market capitalization of $987.55 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.90 and a beta of 1.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 11.30, a current ratio of 46.75 and a quick ratio of 46.75. Ellington Financial Inc. has a one year low of $10.88 and a one year high of $14.21.

Ellington Financial (NYSE:EFC) last issued its 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). The firm had revenue of $27.99 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $30.77 million. Ellington Financial had a return on equity of 11.36% and a net margin of 78.53%. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.42 earnings per share. On average, research analysts anticipate that Ellington Financial Inc. will post 1.53 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ellington Financial Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a monthly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 28th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, April 30th will be given a dividend of $0.13 per share. This represents a $1.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 13.44%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 29th. Ellington Financial’s payout ratio is presently 173.34%.

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.