Annaly Capital Management Inc (NYSE:NLY) Short Interest Up 53.0% in December

Annaly Capital Management Inc (NYSE:NLY) saw a large increase in short interest in December. As of December 31st, there was short interest totaling 20,015,708 shares, an increase of 53.0% from the December 15th total of 13,083,573 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 8,825,795 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 2.3 days. Currently, 2.9% of the company’s stock are short sold. Currently, 2.9% of the company’s stock are short sold. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 8,825,795 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 2.3 days.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of NLY. ProShare Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Annaly Capital Management by 1.8% during the third quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 27,309 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $552,000 after acquiring an additional 481 shares during the period. MCF Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Annaly Capital Management by 41.6% in the third quarter. MCF Advisors LLC now owns 1,688 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 496 shares during the period. Quadrant Capital Group LLC lifted its position in shares of Annaly Capital Management by 1.4% during the 3rd quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 39,282 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $794,000 after purchasing an additional 524 shares during the last quarter. Jupiter Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Annaly Capital Management by 3.4% during the 2nd quarter. Jupiter Wealth Management LLC now owns 16,621 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $347,000 after purchasing an additional 551 shares during the last quarter. Finally, CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC boosted its stake in Annaly Capital Management by 23.9% during the 3rd quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 2,859 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $58,000 after purchasing an additional 552 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 51.56% of the company’s stock.

Annaly Capital Management Stock Performance

Shares of NLY traded up $0.55 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $24.38. 9,278,105 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 8,953,335. The company has a market cap of $16.65 billion, a PE ratio of 11.29, a PEG ratio of 7.53 and a beta of 1.25. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $22.61 and its 200-day moving average is $21.45. Annaly Capital Management has a 52 week low of $16.59 and a 52 week high of $24.40.

Annaly Capital Management (NYSE:NLY) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 22nd. The real estate investment trust reported $0.73 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.72 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $1.55 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $493.55 million. Annaly Capital Management had a return on equity of 15.96% and a net margin of 26.68%. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Annaly Capital Management will post 2.81 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Annaly Capital Management Dividend Announcement

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 issued a dividend of $0.70 per share. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 11.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, December 31st. Annaly Capital Management’s dividend payout ratio is currently 129.63%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. Piper Sandler restated an “overweight” rating and set a $25.00 price target (up from $23.50) on shares of Annaly Capital Management in a report on Thursday. Jones Trading reissued a “buy” rating and set a $22.00 price objective on shares of Annaly Capital Management in a research report on Thursday, October 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Annaly Capital Management from $21.00 to $22.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, October 20th. BTIG Research raised Annaly Capital Management from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $25.00 price target for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 6th. Finally, Barclays set a $23.00 price target on Annaly Capital Management and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 6th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $22.81.

Annaly Capital Management Company Profile

Annaly Capital Management, Inc is a publicly traded real estate investment trust (REIT) that specializes in generating income through investment in mortgage-related assets. The company’s core business activities include the acquisition, financing, and management of a diversified portfolio of agency and non-agency residential mortgage-backed securities (RMBS), commercial mortgage-backed securities (CMBS), and other real estate debt instruments. Annaly seeks to profit from the spread between the interest earned on its mortgage investments and its cost of funds, as well as from capital gains realized through active portfolio management.

Founded in 1997 and headquartered in New York City, Annaly has grown to become one of the largest mortgage REITs in the United States.