Castlekeep Investment Advisors LLC Decreases Holdings in Ellington Financial Inc. (NYSE:EFC)

Castlekeep Investment Advisors LLC trimmed its holdings in Ellington Financial Inc. (NYSE:EFC - Free Report) by 32.3% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 90,073 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 43,017 shares during the period. Castlekeep Investment Advisors LLC owned approximately 0.10% of Ellington Financial worth $1,194,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. California State Teachers Retirement System grew its position in Ellington Financial by 1.1% in the fourth quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 81,097 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $983,000 after acquiring an additional 873 shares during the period. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System boosted its position in shares of Ellington Financial by 3.0% during the fourth quarter. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System now owns 30,531 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $370,000 after buying an additional 880 shares during the period. Arizona State Retirement System boosted its position in shares of Ellington Financial by 4.2% during the first quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 26,280 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $348,000 after buying an additional 1,052 shares during the period. Sigma Planning Corp boosted its position in shares of Ellington Financial by 2.8% during the first quarter. Sigma Planning Corp now owns 56,254 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $746,000 after buying an additional 1,510 shares during the period. Finally, Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC boosted its position in shares of Ellington Financial by 162.3% during the fourth quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 2,602 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 1,610 shares during the period. 55.62% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

EFC has been the subject of several research analyst reports. B. Riley raised their price target on Ellington Financial from $15.00 to $16.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 15th. UBS Group raised their price target on Ellington Financial from $12.00 to $12.50 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 10th. Finally, Piper Sandler lowered their price target on Ellington Financial from $15.00 to $14.50 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, July 1st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Ellington Financial presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $14.30.

Ellington Financial Stock Down 0.9%

NYSE:EFC traded down $0.13 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $13.25. The company had a trading volume of 326,823 shares, compared to its average volume of 970,155. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.39 and a beta of 0.98. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $12.92 and its 200-day simple moving average is $12.81. Ellington Financial Inc. has a 12-month low of $11.12 and a 12-month 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 released its earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The financial services provider reported $0.39 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.38 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $82.91 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $107.06 million. Ellington Financial had a return on equity of 12.06% and a net margin of 101.59%. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Ellington Financial Inc. will post 1.38 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ellington Financial Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a jul 25 dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 29th. Investors of record on Thursday, July 31st will be issued a $0.13 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, July 31st. This represents a yield of 11.8%. Ellington Financial's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 110.64%.

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.