Citizens Jmp Has Lowered Expectations for MFA Financial (NYSE:MFA) Stock Price

Key Points

• Citizens Jmp lowered its price target for MFA Financial from $11.00 to $8.00 while maintaining a “market outperform” rating, implying about 22% upside from the prior close.
• MFA shares opened at $6.54, down 2.3%, near their 52-week low of $6.52. Analyst sentiment is mixed, with an overall “Hold” rating and an average price target of $9.79.
• Institutional ownership remains substantial at 65.28%, with major investors including BlackRock, State Street, and Renaissance Technologies increasing their positions.

MFA Financial (NYSE:MFA - Get Free Report) had its target price dropped by research analysts at Citizens Jmp from $11.00 to $8.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Thursday, Benzinga reports. The firm presently has a "market outperform" rating on the real estate investment trust's stock. Citizens Jmp's price objective would indicate a potential upside of 22.23% from the stock's previous close.

Several other equities analysts have also recently commented on the stock. BTIG Research reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $9.50 price target (down from $10.50) on shares of MFA Financial in a research report on Tuesday, October 6th. Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed a "sector perform" rating and set a $10.00 price objective on shares of MFA Financial in a research report on Thursday, August 20th. Weiss Ratings lowered MFA Financial from a "sell (d+)" rating to a "sell (d)" rating in a research report on Friday, October 9th. William Blair set a $11.00 price objective on MFA Financial in a research note on Tuesday, August 4th. Finally, Citigroup reiterated a "market outperform" rating on shares of MFA Financial in a report on Thursday. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $9.79.

MFA Financial Stock Down 2.3%

Shares of MFA opened at $6.54 on Thursday. MFA Financial has a fifty-two week low of $6.52 and a fifty-two week high of $10.43. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $8.40 and its 200 day moving average price is $9.16. The company has a market cap of $661.62 million, a P/E ratio of 6.54 and a beta of 1.45.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in MFA. BlackRock Inc. grew its holdings in shares of MFA Financial by 3.0% during the second quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 9,459,988 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $91,667,000 after purchasing an additional 271,707 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp increased its position in shares of MFA Financial by 6.0% during the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 2,576,990 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $25,869,000 after purchasing an additional 145,992 shares in the last quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC increased its position in shares of MFA Financial by 245.2% during the first quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 777,025 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $7,444,000 after purchasing an additional 551,927 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its holdings in shares of MFA Financial by 0.7% in the 2nd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 537,991 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $5,213,000 after purchasing an additional 3,960 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of MFA Financial in the 2nd quarter valued at about $3,589,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 65.28% of the company's stock.

About MFA Financial

MFA Financial, Inc is a real estate investment trust that invests primarily in residential mortgage assets. The company focuses on generating income from a portfolio of residential mortgage loans, mortgage-backed securities and other mortgage-related investments.

Its investments may include agency and non-agency mortgage-backed securities, residential whole loans, credit-risk transfer securities and mortgage servicing rights. MFA also acquires and manages residential mortgage assets through subsidiaries and strategic investment relationships, with activities centered on the U.S.

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