Bank of America Corp DE Raises Stock Position in Ellington Financial Inc. $EFC

Key Points

• Bank of America significantly increased its Ellington Financial stake by 234.3% in the first quarter, reaching 537,199 shares valued at approximately $6.4 million. Institutional investors collectively own 55.62% of EFC.
• Analyst sentiment remains cautious: four analysts rate the stock “Hold,” with a consensus price target of $14.50. BTIG downgraded EFC to “Neutral,” while UBS raised its target to $14.50.
• Ellington Financial reported quarterly earnings of $0.60 per share, exceeding the $0.46 estimate, and revenue of $134.11 million. The company declared a monthly dividend of $0.13 per share, representing an annualized yield of about 11.6%.

Bank of America Corp DE grew its stake in Ellington Financial Inc. (NYSE:EFC - Free Report) by 234.3% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 537,199 shares of the financial services provider's stock after buying an additional 376,528 shares during the period. Bank of America Corp DE owned 0.43% of Ellington Financial worth $6,366,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Denali Advisors LLC increased its stake in Ellington Financial by 679.9% in the fourth quarter. Denali Advisors LLC now owns 88,133 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,197,000 after purchasing an additional 76,833 shares during the period. California State Teachers Retirement System grew its holdings in shares of Ellington Financial by 92.5% during the first quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 154,243 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,828,000 after buying an additional 74,135 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its holdings in shares of Ellington Financial by 13.6% during the first quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 810,885 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $9,609,000 after buying an additional 97,007 shares during the last quarter. Artemis Investment Management LLP acquired a new position in Ellington Financial in the 4th quarter valued at about $2,654,000. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its position in Ellington Financial by 18.5% in the 1st quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 605,681 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $7,177,000 after acquiring an additional 94,625 shares during the period. 55.62% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

EFC has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. BTIG Research cut Ellington Financial from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 17th. UBS Group upped their price target on Ellington Financial from $14.00 to $14.50 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 19th. Wall Street Zen raised Ellington Financial from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, May 9th. Zacks Research lowered shares of Ellington Financial from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, July 13th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Ellington Financial in a research note on Tuesday, August 11th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, According to MarketBeat.com, Ellington Financial presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $14.50.

Ellington Financial Stock Down 1.0%

Shares of NYSE EFC opened at $13.45 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 52.06, a current ratio of 52.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 10.39. Ellington Financial Inc. has a 52 week low of $11.27 and a 52 week high of $14.12. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $13.51 and a 200 day moving average price of $13.04. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.73 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.20 and a beta of 0.94.

Ellington Financial (NYSE:EFC - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The financial services provider reported $0.60 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.46 by $0.14. Ellington Financial had a net margin of 52.43% and a return on equity of 16.61%. The company had revenue of $134.11 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $114.59 million. Equities research analysts anticipate that Ellington Financial Inc. will post 2.13 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ellington Financial Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a monthly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 31st will be paid a dividend of $0.13 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 31st. This represents a c) annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 11.6%. Ellington Financial's payout ratio is 95.12%.

Ellington Financial Company Profile

Ellington Financial, Inc NYSE: EFC is a mortgage real estate investment trust (REIT) that focuses on generating attractive risk-adjusted returns through investments in residential and commercial mortgage-related assets. Established in 2013, the company is externally managed by Ellington Financial Management, L.P., a subsidiary of Ellington Management Group, an alternative asset management firm. EFC's core strategy centers on actively acquiring and managing agency and non-agency residential mortgage-backed securities (MBS), mortgage servicing rights, residential whole loans, and other structured finance instruments, including asset-backed securities and commercial mortgage-backed securities (CMBS).

The company employs leverage and structured financing tools—such as repurchase agreements and secured credit facilities—to enhance portfolio yield while maintaining focus on risk mitigation.

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