MFA Financial (NYSE:MFA) Sets New 1-Year Low – What’s Next?

MFA Financial, Inc. (NYSE:MFA)’s share price reached a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Monday. The company traded as low as $7.58 and last traded at $7.3060, with a volume of 3046859 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $7.65.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on the stock. BTIG Research reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $9.50 price target on shares of MFA Financial in a research report on Tuesday. Citigroup restated a “market outperform” rating on shares of MFA Financial in a report on Tuesday, August 4th. William Blair set a $11.00 price objective on shares of MFA Financial in a research note on Tuesday, August 4th. Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and set a $10.00 target price on shares of MFA Financial in a report on Thursday, August 20th. Finally, Citizens Jmp dropped their target price on shares of MFA Financial from $11.50 to $11.00 and set a “market outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, August 4th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $10.29.

MFA Financial Stock Down 0.9%

The stock has a market cap of $736.44 million, a P/E ratio of 7.29 and a beta of 1.45. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $8.67 and a 200-day simple moving average of $9.28.

MFA Financial Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 30th. Investors of record on Monday, October 5th will be given a $0.36 dividend. This represents a $1.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 19.8%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, October 5th. MFA Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 144.00%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Jennison Associates LLC boosted its position in shares of MFA Financial by 2.8% during the first quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 74,929 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $718,000 after buying an additional 2,074 shares during the period. Corient Private Wealth LLC grew its holdings in shares of MFA Financial by 2.0% during the fourth quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 107,767 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $1,003,000 after buying an additional 2,149 shares in the last quarter. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. raised its position in MFA Financial by 109.4% in the 2nd quarter. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. now owns 4,325 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $41,000 after buying an additional 2,260 shares during the last quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC acquired a new stake in shares of MFA Financial in the second quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Finally, Optiver Holding B.V. acquired a new stake in MFA Financial in the 1st quarter valued at $29,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.28% of the company’s stock.

About MFA Financial

MFA Financial, Inc is a real estate investment trust that invests primarily in residential mortgage assets. The company focuses on generating income from a portfolio of residential mortgage loans, mortgage-backed securities and other mortgage-related investments.

Its investments may include agency and non-agency mortgage-backed securities, residential whole loans, credit-risk transfer securities and mortgage servicing rights. MFA also acquires and manages residential mortgage assets through subsidiaries and strategic investment relationships, with activities centered on the U.S.