Ellington Financial Inc. (NYSE:EFC) Declares $0.13 Jul 25 Dividend

Ellington Financial Inc. (NYSE:EFC - Get Free Report) declared a jul 25 dividend on Tuesday, July 8th, RTT News reports. Investors of record on Thursday, July 31st will be given a dividend of 0.13 per share by the financial services provider on Friday, August 29th. This represents a yield of 11.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, July 31st.

Ellington Financial has a dividend payout ratio of 91.2% indicating that its dividend is currently covered by earnings, but may not be in the future if the company's earnings tumble. Equities research analysts expect Ellington Financial to earn $1.67 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $1.56 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 93.4%.

Ellington Financial Price Performance

EFC traded up $0.09 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $13.28. 994,629 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 984,015. The company has a market cap of $1.26 billion, a PE ratio of 9.42 and a beta of 0.98. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $12.88 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $12.77. Ellington Financial has a 1 year low of $11.12 and a 1 year high of $14.40. The company has a current ratio of 42.26, a quick ratio of 42.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 11.11.

Ellington Financial (NYSE:EFC - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The financial services provider reported $0.39 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.38 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $82.91 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $107.06 million. Ellington Financial had a net margin of 101.59% and a return on equity of 12.06%. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Ellington Financial will post 1.38 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ellington Financial

An institutional investor recently raised its position in Ellington Financial stock. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC lifted its position in Ellington Financial Inc. (NYSE:EFC - Free Report) by 15.1% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 179,803 shares of the financial services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 23,553 shares during the quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC owned 0.19% of Ellington Financial worth $2,384,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period. 55.62% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. B. Riley raised their target price on shares of Ellington Financial from $15.00 to $16.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 15th. Piper Sandler dropped their price objective on shares of Ellington Financial from $15.00 to $14.50 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, July 1st. Finally, UBS Group reissued a "neutral" rating on shares of Ellington Financial in a research note on Wednesday, May 14th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $14.75.

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.