EMC Capital Management Raises Stock Position in MFA Financial, Inc. (NYSE:MFA)

EMC Capital Management increased its position in shares of MFA Financial, Inc. (NYSE:MFA) by 639.9% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 13,888 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after acquiring an additional 12,011 shares during the period. EMC Capital Management’s holdings in MFA Financial were worth $142,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. bought a new position in shares of MFA Financial in the third quarter worth $25,000. Future Financial Wealth Managment LLC purchased a new position in MFA Financial during the third quarter worth about $38,000. Castleview Partners LLC bought a new position in MFA Financial in the 3rd quarter worth about $79,000. Zacks Investment Management raised its holdings in shares of MFA Financial by 12.7% in the 3rd quarter. Zacks Investment Management now owns 11,377 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $145,000 after acquiring an additional 1,281 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Quest Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of MFA Financial during the 3rd quarter valued at about $189,000. 65.28% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on MFA. Janney Montgomery Scott started coverage on shares of MFA Financial in a research note on Thursday, January 2nd. They issued a “buy” rating and a $14.00 target price on the stock. Wedbush restated an “outperform” rating and set a $15.00 price objective on shares of MFA Financial in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. JMP Securities cut their target price on shares of MFA Financial from $13.50 to $12.50 and set a “market outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded MFA Financial from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $13.80.

MFA Financial Stock Performance

MFA stock opened at $10.36 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $1.06 billion, a P/E ratio of 6.51 and a beta of 2.11. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $10.49 and its 200 day moving average is $11.46. MFA Financial, Inc. has a 52 week low of $9.36 and a 52 week high of $13.45.

MFA Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 31st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st will be issued a $0.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 31st. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 13.52%. MFA Financial’s dividend payout ratio is currently 88.05%.

MFA Financial Profile

MFA Financial, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a real estate investment trust in the United States. It invests in residential mortgage securities, including non-agency mortgage-backed securities, agency MBS, and credit risk transfer securities; residential whole loans, including purchased performing loans, purchased credit deteriorated, and non-performing loans; and mortgage servicing rights related assets.