Ellington Credit (NYSE:EARN) Lowered to "Sell" Rating by Wall Street Zen

Key Points

• Ellington Credit has been downgraded by Wall Street Zen from a "hold" to a "sell" rating.
• UBS Group has raised its price target for Ellington Credit from $5.50 to $5.75, maintaining a "neutral" rating.
• In its recent quarterly earnings report, Ellington Credit reported earnings of $0.18 per share, below the expected $0.20, with revenues also missing estimates.

Ellington Credit (NYSE:EARN - Get Free Report) was downgraded by stock analysts at Wall Street Zen from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report issued on Saturday.

Separately, UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of Ellington Credit from $5.50 to $5.75 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 16th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $6.13.

Ellington Credit Trading Down 0.3%

Shares of EARN stock traded down $0.02 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $5.69. 204,741 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 363,073. Ellington Credit has a fifty-two week low of $4.32 and a fifty-two week high of $7.11. The stock's 50 day moving average is $5.80 and its 200-day moving average is $5.71. The company has a market cap of $213.53 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.58 and a beta of 1.31.

Ellington Credit (NYSE:EARN - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 19th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.18 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.20 by ($0.02). The business had revenue of $9.87 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $12.15 million. Ellington Credit had a net margin of 19.24% and a return on equity of 15.90%. Equities analysts anticipate that Ellington Credit will post 1.17 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ellington Credit

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. First Trust Advisors LP lifted its holdings in shares of Ellington Credit by 2.2% in the 4th quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 90,895 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $602,000 after buying an additional 1,959 shares during the period. Bogart Wealth LLC raised its position in Ellington Credit by 62.5% during the second quarter. Bogart Wealth LLC now owns 5,200 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 2,000 shares in the last quarter. Inspire Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Ellington Credit by 13.7% in the second quarter. Inspire Advisors LLC now owns 19,566 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $113,000 after acquiring an additional 2,363 shares during the period. Vident Advisory LLC lifted its holdings in Ellington Credit by 27.5% in the first quarter. Vident Advisory LLC now owns 17,383 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $94,000 after acquiring an additional 3,754 shares during the period. Finally, Quarry LP purchased a new stake in Ellington Credit in the 1st quarter worth approximately $33,000. 20.40% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Ellington Credit

Ellington Credit Company, a real estate investment trust, acquires, invests in, and manages residential mortgage-and real estate-related assets. It acquires and manages residential mortgage-backed securities (RMBS), including agency pools and agency collateralized mortgage obligations (CMOs); and non-agency RMBS, such as non-agency CMOs, such as investment grade and non-investment grade.