Annaly Capital Management Inc (NYSE:NLY) Sees Large Growth in Short Interest

Annaly Capital Management Inc (NYSE:NLY) was the target of a significant growth in short interest in the month of March. As of March 31st, there was short interest totaling 21,670,917 shares, a growth of 49.1% from the March 15th total of 14,532,723 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 10,838,195 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 2.0 days. Currently, 3.0% of the company’s stock are sold short.

Annaly Capital Management Trading Up 0.7%

Shares of NYSE:NLY opened at $22.57 on Thursday. Annaly Capital Management has a twelve month low of $17.39 and a twelve month high of $24.52. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $22.25 and a 200-day simple moving average of $22.23. The company has a market capitalization of $16.21 billion, a PE ratio of 8.12, a P/E/G ratio of 6.89 and a beta of 1.23.

Annaly Capital Management (NYSE:NLY) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 28th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.74 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.72 by $0.02. Annaly Capital Management had a net margin of 34.02% and a return on equity of 15.80%. The business had revenue of $1.06 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $567.67 million. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Annaly Capital Management will post 2.81 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Annaly Capital Management Announces Dividend

The firm 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 $0.70 per share. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 12.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 31st. Annaly Capital Management’s dividend payout ratio is currently 100.72%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on NLY. BTIG Research upgraded shares of 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. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Annaly Capital Management from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Saturday, April 11th. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their price objective on shares of Annaly Capital Management from $23.00 to $25.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 5th. Argus raised Annaly Capital Management to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, February 5th. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Annaly Capital Management in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have assigned a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $23.78.

Insider Buying and Selling at Annaly Capital Management

In related news, CFO Serena Wolfe sold 16,536 shares of Annaly Capital Management stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $23.14, for a total value of $382,643.04. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 173,081 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,005,094.34. This trade represents a 8.72% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, COO Steven Francis Campbell sold 26,491 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $22.83, for a total value of $604,789.53. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 178,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,063,740. The trade was a 12.95% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 71,252 shares of company stock worth $1,639,995. Insiders own 0.22% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Annaly Capital Management

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in NLY. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. lifted its position in Annaly Capital Management by 23.5% during the fourth quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. now owns 236,839 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $5,311,000 after buying an additional 45,001 shares during the period. Audent Global Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in Annaly Capital Management in the 4th quarter valued at about $2,039,000. SHP Wealth Management acquired a new position in shares of Annaly Capital Management during the 4th quarter valued at about $43,000. S Harris Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Annaly Capital Management during the 4th quarter valued at about $222,000. Finally, SG Trading Solutions LLC purchased a new position in shares of Annaly Capital Management during the 4th quarter worth about $1,339,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 51.56% of the company’s stock.

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.