MFA Financial, Inc. (NYSE:MFA) Receives Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Brokerages

Shares of MFA Financial, Inc. (NYSE:MFA) have been given an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by the eight research firms that are covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and four have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 12 month price objective among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $10.45.

MFA has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. BTIG Research upgraded shares of MFA Financial from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $10.50 price target for the company in a research report on Wednesday, June 17th. Royal Bank Of Canada dropped their price objective on MFA Financial from $11.00 to $10.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, June 3rd. Citizens Jmp boosted their target price on MFA Financial from $11.00 to $11.50 and gave the stock a “market outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, May 4th. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of MFA Financial in a research note on Wednesday, April 15th. Finally, Citigroup reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of MFA Financial in a report on Monday, May 4th.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On MFA Financial

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Quarry LP purchased a new position in MFA Financial in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $27,000. Headlands Technologies LLC raised its position in shares of MFA Financial by 62.3% during the 2nd quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC now owns 2,992 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 1,149 shares in the last quarter. Optiver Holding B.V. bought a new stake in shares of MFA Financial during the 1st quarter worth $29,000. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its position in MFA Financial by 86.1% in the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 4,530 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $42,000 after acquiring an additional 2,096 shares in the last quarter. Finally, US Bancorp DE grew its position in MFA Financial by 540.5% in the third quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 5,925 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $54,000 after acquiring an additional 5,000 shares in the last quarter. 65.28% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

MFA Financial Trading Down 0.1%

MFA stock opened at $9.47 on Monday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $9.58 and a 200-day moving average of $9.75. The firm has a market capitalization of $962.66 million, a P/E ratio of 10.89 and a beta of 1.41. MFA Financial has a 12 month low of $8.78 and a 12 month high of $10.56.

MFA Financial (NYSE:MFA) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.30 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.31 by ($0.01). MFA Financial had a return on equity of 6.86% and a net margin of 17.80%.The firm had revenue of $43.30 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $67.52 million. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.29 EPS.

MFA Financial Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 31st. Investors of record on Tuesday, June 30th will be given a $0.36 dividend. This represents a $1.44 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 15.2%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, June 30th. MFA Financial’s dividend payout ratio is 165.52%.

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.