MFA Financial (NYSE:MFA) Sees Unusually-High Trading Volume – Here’s What Happened

by · The Cerbat Gem

Shares of MFA Financial, Inc. (NYSE:MFA – Get Free Report) saw unusually-high trading volume on Wednesday . Approximately 4,014,932 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 349% from the previous session’s volume of 895,124 shares.The stock last traded at $8.75 and had previously closed at $8.56.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently issued reports on MFA. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price target on shares of MFA Financial from $13.50 to $12.50 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 20th. Janney Montgomery Scott assumed coverage on shares of MFA Financial in a report on Thursday, January 2nd. They set a “buy” rating and a $14.00 price objective for the company. JMP Securities lowered their target price on shares of MFA Financial from $13.50 to $12.50 and set a “market outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, StockNews.com cut shares of MFA Financial from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, March 28th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $13.70.

Read Our Latest Stock Report on MFA

MFA Financial Stock Performance

The company’s 50 day moving average price is $10.39 and its 200-day moving average price is $10.90. The stock has a market cap of $836.08 million, a P/E ratio of 10.07 and a beta of 1.61.

MFA Financial (NYSE:MFA – Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 19th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.40 by ($0.02). MFA Financial had a return on equity of 9.61% and a net margin of 16.47%. The firm had revenue of $50.80 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $58.06 million. On average, analysts forecast that MFA Financial, Inc. will post 1.5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

MFA Financial Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 30th. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st will be given a dividend of $0.36 per share. This represents a $1.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 17.66%. This is an increase from MFA Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.35. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. MFA Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 177.78%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. purchased a new position in shares of MFA Financial in the 4th quarter worth about $18,325,000. First Trust Advisors LP raised its position in MFA Financial by 531.6% in the fourth quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 794,394 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $8,095,000 after acquiring an additional 668,618 shares during the period. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. boosted its stake in MFA Financial by 11.0% in the fourth quarter. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. now owns 5,085,927 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $51,824,000 after acquiring an additional 502,840 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of MFA Financial during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $3,564,000. Finally, Barclays PLC increased its stake in shares of MFA Financial by 902.9% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 374,481 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $4,764,000 after purchasing an additional 337,142 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 65.28% of the company’s stock.

About MFA Financial

(Get Free Report)

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.

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