AXS Investments LLC Sells 26,867 Shares of Ellington Financial Inc. (NYSE:EFC)

AXS Investments LLC lowered its stake in Ellington Financial Inc. (NYSE:EFC) by 12.7% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 184,883 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 26,867 shares during the period. AXS Investments LLC’s holdings in Ellington Financial were worth $2,350,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Private Trust Co. NA boosted its stake in shares of Ellington Financial by 42.8% during the fourth quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 4,334 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $55,000 after purchasing an additional 1,299 shares in the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC bought a new position in shares of Ellington Financial during the fourth quarter worth about $102,000. Optimum Investment Advisors increased its holdings in Ellington Financial by 8.4% in the fourth quarter. Optimum Investment Advisors now owns 12,900 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $164,000 after purchasing an additional 1,000 shares in the last quarter. Campbell & CO Investment Adviser LLC bought a new stake in Ellington Financial in the third quarter worth approximately $165,000. Finally, Strs Ohio increased its holdings in Ellington Financial by 11.7% in the fourth quarter. Strs Ohio now owns 15,300 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $194,000 after purchasing an additional 1,600 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 55.62% of the company’s stock.

Ellington Financial Price Performance

NYSE EFC traded down $0.21 during trading on Thursday, reaching $11.84. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 896,298 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,034,198. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.01 billion, a PE ratio of 18.83 and a beta of 1.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 10.99, a current ratio of 46.79 and a quick ratio of 46.79. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $11.59 and a 200 day moving average of $12.16. Ellington Financial Inc. has a one year low of $10.88 and a one year high of $14.21.

Ellington Financial (NYSE:EFC) last announced its earnings results on Monday, February 26th. The financial services provider reported $0.40 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.41 by ($0.01). The business had revenue of $27.99 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $30.77 million. Ellington Financial had a return on equity of 10.51% and a net margin of 66.65%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.42 earnings per share. Analysts expect that Ellington Financial Inc. will post 1.46 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ellington Financial Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a monthly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 25th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 31st will be issued a $0.13 dividend. This represents a $1.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 13.18%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 31st. Ellington Financial’s payout ratio is currently 243.75%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently commented on EFC. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price objective on Ellington Financial from $14.00 to $13.25 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 28th. JMP Securities reaffirmed a “market outperform” rating and set a $14.50 target price on shares of Ellington Financial in a research report on Thursday, April 18th. BTIG Research dropped their price target on Ellington Financial from $15.50 to $13.50 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 18th. StockNews.com raised Ellington Financial from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 2nd. Finally, Jonestrading began coverage on Ellington Financial in a research report on Friday, April 19th. They set a “hold” rating on the stock. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Ellington Financial has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $13.95.

Ellington Financial Profile

Ellington Financial Inc, through its subsidiary, Ellington Financial Operating Partnership LLC, acquires and manages mortgage-related, consumer-related, corporate-related, and other financial assets in the United States. The company acquires and manages residential mortgage-backed securities (RMBS) backed by prime jumbo, Alt-A, manufactured housing, and subprime mortgage; RMBS for which the principal and interest payments are guaranteed by the U.S.