Brokerages Set MFA Financial, Inc. (NYSE:MFA) PT at $10.81

Shares of MFA Financial, Inc. (NYSE:MFA) have received a consensus rating of “Hold” from the six ratings firms that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and two have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 12 month price objective among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $10.8125.

MFA has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Weiss Ratings upgraded MFA Financial from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research note on Friday, January 16th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their target price on MFA Financial from $10.00 to $11.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, February 20th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their target price on MFA Financial from $10.00 to $11.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Thursday, March 5th.

MFA Financial Trading Up 2.3%

MFA opened at $9.66 on Friday. MFA Financial has a 12 month low of $7.85 and a 12 month high of $10.56. The company has a market cap of $985.68 million, a PE ratio of 7.48 and a beta of 1.57. The company has a 50 day moving average of $9.91 and a 200 day moving average of $9.60.

MFA Financial (NYSE:MFA) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 18th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.27 earnings per share (EPS) 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 analysts’ expectations of $60.56 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.39 EPS. Research analysts forecast that MFA Financial will post 1.5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

MFA Financial Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 30th. Investors 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 14.9%. MFA Financial’s payout ratio is currently 111.63%.

Institutional Trading of MFA Financial

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of MFA. Corient Private Wealth LLC boosted its holdings in MFA Financial by 2.0% in the 4th quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 107,767 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $1,003,000 after purchasing an additional 2,149 shares during the period. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV grew its position in shares of MFA Financial by 8.5% during the 4th quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV now owns 40,882 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $381,000 after purchasing an additional 3,211 shares in the last quarter. XTX Topco Ltd increased its holdings in shares of MFA Financial by 190.4% in the fourth quarter. XTX Topco Ltd now owns 100,745 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $938,000 after purchasing an additional 66,048 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its position in shares of MFA Financial by 25.1% in the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 760,910 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $7,084,000 after buying an additional 152,718 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Tudor Investment Corp ET AL purchased a new stake in shares of MFA Financial in the fourth quarter worth $2,523,000. 65.28% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About MFA Financial

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.