Ellington Financial Inc. (NYSE:EFC) Announces Monthly Dividend of $0.13

Ellington Financial Inc. (NYSE:EFC) declared a monthly dividend on Tuesday, February 11th,Wall Street Journal reports. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 28th will be paid a dividend of 0.13 per share by the financial services provider on Tuesday, March 25th. This represents a $1.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 12.26%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 28th.

Ellington Financial has raised its dividend by an average of 2.6% annually over the last three years. Ellington Financial has a payout ratio of 90.7% meaning its dividend is currently covered by earnings, but may not be in the future if the company’s earnings fall. Analysts expect Ellington Financial to earn $1.67 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $1.56 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 93.4%.

Ellington Financial Stock Performance

Shares of Ellington Financial stock traded up $0.05 on Tuesday, reaching $12.73. 676,575 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 865,362. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $12.35 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $12.58. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.71 and a beta of 1.97. Ellington Financial has a twelve month low of $10.88 and a twelve month high of $13.46. The company has a quick ratio of 37.04, a current ratio of 37.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 10.87.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have recently commented on EFC shares. JMP Securities reaffirmed a “market outperform” rating and issued a $14.00 price objective on shares of Ellington Financial in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. B. Riley upgraded shares of Ellington Financial to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, three have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $13.58.

Ellington Financial Company 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.