Short Interest in Rithm Capital Corp. (NYSE:RITM) Drops By 23.5%

Rithm Capital Corp. (NYSE:RITM) was the target of a large decrease in short interest during the month of December. As of December 15th, there was short interest totaling 9,576,073 shares, a decrease of 23.5% from the November 30th total of 12,517,320 shares. Currently, 1.7% of the shares of the stock are sold short. Based on an average trading volume of 5,259,790 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 1.8 days. Based on an average trading volume of 5,259,790 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 1.8 days. Currently, 1.7% of the shares of the stock are sold short.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Michael Nierenberg sold 301,548 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $11.00, for a total transaction of $3,317,028.00. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider David Zeiden sold 19,285 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $11.11, for a total value of $214,256.35. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Company insiders own 0.44% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Rithm Capital

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. bought a new position in shares of Rithm Capital during the second quarter worth $30,000. Bessemer Group Inc. raised its stake in Rithm Capital by 658.9% during the 3rd quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 2,656 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 2,306 shares during the period. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp bought a new position in Rithm Capital during the third quarter worth about $31,000. Mather Group LLC. acquired a new position in Rithm Capital in the third quarter valued at about $33,000. Finally, Optimum Investment Advisors increased its holdings in shares of Rithm Capital by 200.0% in the third quarter. Optimum Investment Advisors now owns 3,000 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 2,000 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 44.92% of the company’s stock.

Rithm Capital Trading Down 0.1%

Shares of RITM stock traded down $0.01 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $11.06. The company had a trading volume of 4,548,532 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,321,737. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.52, a current ratio of 0.45 and a quick ratio of 0.45. Rithm Capital has a 1-year low of $9.13 and a 1-year high of $12.74. The company has a 50 day moving average of $11.11 and a 200 day moving average of $11.57. The firm has a market cap of $6.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.63 and a beta of 1.22.

Rithm Capital (NYSE:RITM) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 30th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.54 EPS for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.54. Rithm Capital had a return on equity of 18.82% and a net margin of 17.08%.The business had revenue of $1.11 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.07 billion. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Rithm Capital will post 1.93 EPS for the current year.

Rithm Capital Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 30th. Investors of record on Wednesday, December 31st will be paid a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, December 31st. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 9.0%. Rithm Capital’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 68.97%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on RITM shares. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Rithm Capital in a research report on Monday. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Rithm Capital in a research note on Thursday, December 18th. UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of Rithm Capital from $14.00 to $16.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 3rd. Piper Sandler reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $15.50 price objective on shares of Rithm Capital in a report on Monday, December 22nd. Finally, BTIG Research reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $16.00 target price on shares of Rithm Capital in a research note on Wednesday, September 17th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have given a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $14.44.

About Rithm Capital

Rithm Capital Corporation is a specialty finance company that originates, acquires and manages structured credit investments collateralized by real estate assets in the United States. The company focuses primarily on senior floating-rate loans secured by multifamily, commercial, industrial and single-family rental properties, aiming to deliver attractive risk-adjusted yields through a diversified portfolio of floating-rate real estate debt.

In addition to senior loans, Rithm Capital invests in residential mortgage-backed securities, including agency and non-agency pools, as well as other real estate-related credit instruments.