MFA Financial (NYSE:MFA) Downgraded to “Hold” Rating by StockNews.com

StockNews.com lowered shares of MFA Financial (NYSE:MFA) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research report released on Friday morning.

MFA has been the topic of a number of other research reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price target on MFA Financial from $13.50 to $12.50 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 20th. Janney Montgomery Scott started coverage on MFA Financial in a research report on Thursday, January 2nd. They issued a “buy” rating and a $14.00 price target on the stock. Finally, JMP Securities cut their price objective 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. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, MFA Financial has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $13.70.

MFA Financial Stock Performance

MFA opened at $10.59 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $10.58 and a 200-day moving average of $11.15. MFA Financial has a fifty-two week low of $9.36 and a fifty-two week high of $13.45. The company has a market capitalization of $1.09 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.07 and a beta of 2.18.

MFA Financial (NYSE:MFA) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 19th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.40 by ($0.02). MFA Financial had a net margin of 16.47% and a return on equity of 9.61%. The business had revenue of $50.80 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $58.06 million. On average, equities research analysts predict that MFA Financial will post 1.5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

MFA Financial Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be paid a $0.36 dividend. This is a positive change from MFA Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.35. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. This represents a $1.44 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 13.60%. MFA Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 177.78%.

Institutional Trading of MFA Financial

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. acquired a new position in MFA Financial during the third quarter worth about $25,000. National Bank of Canada FI bought a new stake in shares of MFA Financial during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Sterling Capital Management LLC increased its position in MFA Financial by 823.4% during the 4th quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 3,278 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 2,923 shares in the last quarter. Quarry LP acquired a new stake in MFA Financial in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Finally, Parkside Financial Bank & Trust acquired a new stake in MFA Financial in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $46,000. 65.28% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About MFA Financial

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.