Treasurer of the State of North Carolina Boosts Position in Annaly Capital Management, Inc. (NYSE:NLY)

Treasurer of the State of North Carolina boosted its holdings in Annaly Capital Management, Inc. (NYSE:NLY - Free Report) by 12.7% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 246,461 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after buying an additional 27,810 shares during the period. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina's holdings in Annaly Capital Management were worth $4,510,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of NLY. Assetmark Inc. bought a new stake in Annaly Capital Management during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Blue Trust Inc. grew its holdings in Annaly Capital Management by 78.5% during the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,630 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 717 shares in the last quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC raised its position in shares of Annaly Capital Management by 34.4% during the fourth quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 2,143 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $39,000 after buying an additional 549 shares during the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Annaly Capital Management by 29.3% in the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 2,425 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $45,000 after buying an additional 549 shares in the last quarter. Finally, UMB Bank n.a. boosted its position in shares of Annaly Capital Management by 65.7% during the fourth quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 2,598 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $48,000 after acquiring an additional 1,030 shares during the last quarter. 51.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have issued reports on NLY shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on shares of Annaly Capital Management from $21.00 to $19.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday. JMP Securities reaffirmed a "market perform" rating on shares of Annaly Capital Management in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $22.00 price target on shares of Annaly Capital Management in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their price target on Annaly Capital Management from $21.00 to $20.15 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. Finally, Barclays started coverage on Annaly Capital Management in a report on Monday, January 6th. They set an "equal weight" rating and a $19.00 price objective on the stock. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $21.07.

Annaly Capital Management Price Performance

Shares of Annaly Capital Management stock traded up $0.27 on Friday, reaching $17.90. The company had a trading volume of 6,901,621 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,976,023. The firm has a market cap of $10.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.25, a P/E/G ratio of 4.89 and a beta of 1.31. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $20.46 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $19.84. Annaly Capital Management, Inc. has a 1 year low of $16.60 and a 1 year high of $22.11.

Annaly Capital Management (NYSE:NLY - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.72 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.67 by $0.05. Annaly Capital Management had a net margin of 20.70% and a return on equity of 14.95%. As a group, analysts anticipate that Annaly Capital Management, Inc. will post 2.81 EPS for the current year.

Annaly Capital Management Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 30th. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st will be issued a dividend of $0.70 per share. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 15.65%. This is an increase from Annaly Capital Management's previous quarterly dividend of $0.65. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. Annaly Capital Management's dividend payout ratio is presently 176.10%.

Annaly Capital Management Profile

Annaly Capital Management, Inc, a diversified capital manager, engages in mortgage finance. The company invests in agency mortgage-backed securities collateralized by residential mortgages; non-agency residential whole loans and securitized products within the residential and commercial markets; mortgage servicing rights; agency commercial mortgage-backed securities; to-be-announced forward contracts; residential mortgage loans; and agency or private label credit risk transfer securities.