Annaly Capital Management Inc (NYSE:NLY) Given Average Recommendation of "Moderate Buy" by Brokerages

Key Points

• Analyst sentiment is moderately positive: Twelve brokerages rate Annaly Capital Management “Moderate Buy,” with seven buys, two strong buys, and three holds. The average 1-year price target is $24.33, versus a recent price of $23.17.
• Quarterly results exceeded expectations: Annaly reported earnings of $0.79 per share, beating the $0.75 consensus estimate, and generated $1.82 billion in revenue.
• The dividend increased significantly: The quarterly payout rose to $0.75 per share, equivalent to a $3.00 annualized dividend and an approximately 12.9% yield. Institutional investors own 51.56% of the company.

Shares of Annaly Capital Management Inc (NYSE:NLY - Get Free Report) have been given an average rating of "Moderate Buy" by the twelve research firms that are currently covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average 1-year target price among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $24.3333.

Several research analysts have recently commented on NLY shares. UBS Group reissued a "neutral" rating and issued a $23.00 target price (up from $22.50) on shares of Annaly Capital Management in a report on Friday, April 24th. Piper Sandler raised their price target on Annaly Capital Management from $24.50 to $25.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, July 2nd. Zacks Research upgraded Annaly Capital Management from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 29th. BTIG Research set a $24.00 price objective on Annaly Capital Management in a research note on Wednesday, June 17th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on Annaly Capital Management from $26.00 to $24.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, July 24th.

Annaly Capital Management Stock Performance

NLY opened at $23.17 on Friday. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $22.79 and its 200-day simple moving average is $22.38. Annaly Capital Management has a twelve month low of $20.00 and a twelve month high of $24.52. The firm has a market cap of $17.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 5.81, a PEG ratio of 6.08 and a beta of 1.16.

Annaly Capital Management (NYSE:NLY - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 21st. The real estate investment trust reported $0.79 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.75 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $1.82 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $639.80 million. Annaly Capital Management had a net margin of 43.66% and a return on equity of 16.00%. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Annaly Capital Management will post 3.09 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Annaly Capital Management Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, July 31st. Investors of record on Tuesday, June 30th were given a dividend of $0.75 per share. This is a positive change from Annaly Capital Management's previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, June 30th. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 12.9%. Annaly Capital Management's dividend payout ratio is currently 75.19%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Annaly Capital Management

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Horizon Investments LLC acquired a new position in shares of Annaly Capital Management during the fourth quarter valued at $7,946,000. DNB Asset Management AS increased its position in Annaly Capital Management by 165.4% in the fourth quarter. DNB Asset Management AS now owns 336,067 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $7,514,000 after purchasing an additional 209,435 shares during the period. Legal & General Group Plc raised its holdings in Annaly Capital Management by 3.9% during the 4th quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 1,984,768 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $44,379,000 after purchasing an additional 74,074 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in Annaly Capital Management by 5.0% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 63,613,639 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $1,422,401,000 after purchasing an additional 3,024,564 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new position in Annaly Capital Management during the 4th quarter valued at about $162,477,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 51.56% of the company's stock.

About Annaly Capital Management

Annaly Capital Management, Inc is a publicly traded real estate investment trust (REIT) that specializes in generating income through investment in mortgage-related assets. The company's core business activities include the acquisition, financing, and management of a diversified portfolio of agency and non-agency residential mortgage-backed securities (RMBS), commercial mortgage-backed securities (CMBS), and other real estate debt instruments. Annaly seeks to profit from the spread between the interest earned on its mortgage investments and its cost of funds, as well as from capital gains realized through active portfolio management.

Founded in 1997 and headquartered in New York City, Annaly has grown to become one of the largest mortgage REITs in the United States.

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