CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co Sells 39,883 Shares of Ellington Financial Inc. (NYSE:EFC)

CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co cut its holdings in Ellington Financial Inc. (NYSE:EFC - Free Report) by 32.1% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 84,360 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 39,883 shares during the period. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co owned approximately 0.09% of Ellington Financial worth $1,023,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Larson Financial Group LLC boosted its position in Ellington Financial by 18,200.0% during the fourth quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 2,562 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 2,548 shares during the period. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC grew its stake in Ellington Financial by 162.3% in the 4th quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 2,602 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 1,610 shares during the last quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Ellington Financial by 814.9% in the 4th quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 2,644 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 2,355 shares during the period. AlphaQuest LLC bought a new stake in Ellington Financial during the fourth quarter valued at about $37,000. Finally, McIlrath & Eck LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Ellington Financial in the third quarter valued at about $62,000. 55.62% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently weighed in on EFC. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their target price on Ellington Financial from $13.75 to $14.50 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, March 3rd. B. Riley upgraded shares of Ellington Financial to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Finally, JMP Securities reiterated a "market outperform" rating and set a $14.00 target price on shares of Ellington Financial in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd.

Ellington Financial Stock Performance

Shares of EFC traded up $0.06 on Friday, reaching $13.02. 677,728 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 973,561. The firm has a market cap of $1.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.94 and a beta of 1.57. Ellington Financial Inc. has a 12 month low of $11.12 and a 12 month high of $14.40. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $12.91 and its 200-day moving average price is $12.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 10.87, a current ratio of 37.04 and a quick ratio of 37.04.

Ellington Financial (NYSE:EFC - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 27th. The financial services provider reported $0.45 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.38 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $38.13 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $112.88 million. Ellington Financial had a net margin of 106.40% and a return on equity of 10.26%. Equities analysts forecast that Ellington Financial Inc. will post 1.38 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ellington Financial Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a monthly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 27th. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 30th will be paid a $0.13 dividend. This represents a $1.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 11.98%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 30th. Ellington Financial's dividend payout ratio is 113.04%.

Ellington Financial Company Profile

Ellington Financial Inc, through its subsidiary, Ellington Financial Operating Partnership LLC, acquires and manages mortgage-related, consumer-related, corporate-related, and other financial assets in the United States. The company acquires and manages residential mortgage-backed securities (RMBS) backed by prime jumbo, Alt-A, manufactured housing, and subprime mortgage; RMBS for which the principal and interest payments are guaranteed by the U.S.