MFA Financial, Inc. (NYSE:MFA) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Hold” by Analysts

Shares of MFA Financial, Inc. (NYSE:MFA) have earned an average rating of “Hold” from the six brokerages that are covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and two have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month target price among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $10.8125.

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. Weiss Ratings raised shares of MFA Financial from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a report on Friday, January 16th. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their price objective on shares of MFA Financial from $10.00 to $11.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Thursday, March 5th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on shares of MFA Financial from $10.00 to $11.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Friday, February 20th.

MFA Financial Trading Down 2.9%

Shares of NYSE MFA opened at $9.46 on Friday. The business has a 50-day moving average of $9.92 and a 200-day moving average of $9.61. The firm has a market capitalization of $965.26 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.33 and a beta of 1.57. MFA Financial has a 12 month low of $7.85 and a 12 month high of $10.76.

MFA Financial (NYSE:MFA) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 18th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.27 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.27. MFA Financial had a net margin of 23.73% and a return on equity of 6.67%. The business had revenue of $88.72 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $60.56 million. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.39 earnings per share. On average, analysts predict that MFA Financial will post 1.5 earnings per share for the current year.

MFA Financial Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 30th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 31st will be paid a dividend of $0.36 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 31st. This represents a $1.44 annualized dividend and a yield of 15.2%. MFA Financial’s payout ratio is 111.63%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On MFA Financial

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of MFA. Wolverine Asset Management LLC raised its stake in shares of MFA Financial by 57.5% during the third quarter. Wolverine Asset Management LLC now owns 1,513,503 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $13,909,000 after acquiring an additional 552,517 shares in the last quarter. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd boosted its stake in shares of MFA Financial by 1,250.7% in the 3rd quarter. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd now owns 149,931 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $1,378,000 after purchasing an additional 138,831 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of MFA Financial by 2.3% in the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,489,686 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $23,555,000 after purchasing an additional 54,944 shares in the last quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC grew its holdings in shares of MFA Financial by 102.8% during the 2nd quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 204,014 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $1,930,000 after purchasing an additional 103,427 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Citigroup Inc. raised its position in MFA Financial by 440.1% in the 3rd quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 1,345,561 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $12,366,000 after purchasing an additional 1,096,443 shares during the period. 65.28% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

MFA Financial Company Profile

MFA Financial, Inc, headquartered in New York City, is a real estate investment trust that specializes in investing in residential mortgage loans and mortgage-related securities. The company’s primary objective is to generate attractive risk-adjusted returns through net interest income and capital appreciation. As a mortgage REIT, MFA Financial focuses on constructing a diversified portfolio of agency and non-agency residential mortgage assets, leveraging its expertise in acquiring, financing and servicing mortgage products.

MFA Financial’s investment portfolio encompasses a wide range of mortgage instruments, including adjustable-rate and fixed-rate mortgage loans, interest-only securities, and agency mortgage-backed securities guaranteed by government-sponsored entities.