MFA Financial, Inc. (NYSE:MFA) Sees Significant Drop in Short Interest

MFA Financial, Inc. (NYSE:MFA) was the target of a significant drop in short interest during the month of April. As of April 15th, there was short interest totalling 2,190,000 shares, a drop of 14.5% from the March 31st total of 2,560,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 1,430,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 1.5 days. Currently, 2.2% of the company’s stock are sold short.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MFA has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their price objective on MFA Financial from $13.50 to $12.50 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 20th. StockNews.com lowered MFA Financial from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, March 28th. Finally, JMP Securities decreased their price objective on shares of MFA Financial from $12.50 to $12.00 and set a “market outperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 17th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, MFA Financial currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $13.60.

MFA Financial Price Performance

NYSE:MFA opened at $9.98 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.32 and a beta of 1.61. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $9.97 and a 200 day simple moving average of $10.56. MFA Financial has a 12-month low of $7.85 and a 12-month high of $13.45.

MFA Financial (NYSE:MFA) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 19th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.40 by ($0.02). MFA Financial had a net margin of 16.47% and a return on equity of 9.61%. The firm had revenue of $50.80 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $58.06 million. Research analysts anticipate that MFA Financial will post 1.5 EPS for the current fiscal year.

MFA Financial Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 31st were issued a dividend of $0.36 per share. This represents a $1.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 14.43%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 31st. This is a boost from MFA Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.35. MFA Financial’s payout ratio is 177.78%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On MFA Financial

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Golden State Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of MFA Financial in the first quarter worth $25,000. National Bank of Canada FI acquired a new position in MFA Financial during the 4th quarter valued at about $27,000. Sterling Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of MFA Financial by 823.4% during the 4th quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 3,278 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 2,923 shares in the last quarter. Quarry LP acquired a new stake in shares of MFA Financial in the 4th quarter worth approximately $36,000. Finally, Parkside Financial Bank & Trust bought a new position in shares of MFA Financial in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $46,000. 65.28% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

MFA Financial Company Profile

MFA Financial, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a real estate investment trust in the United States. It invests in residential mortgage securities, including non-agency mortgage-backed securities, agency MBS, and credit risk transfer securities; residential whole loans, including purchased performing loans, purchased credit deteriorated, and non-performing loans; and mortgage servicing rights related assets.