Castlekeep Investment Advisors LLC Purchases New Shares in Ellington Financial Inc. (NYSE:EFC)

Castlekeep Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Ellington Financial Inc. (NYSE:EFC - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 133,090 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $1,613,000. Castlekeep Investment Advisors LLC owned about 0.15% of Ellington Financial at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Delphi Financial Group Inc. bought a new stake in Ellington Financial in the 4th quarter worth approximately $4,704,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Ellington Financial by 5.4% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 821,024 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $9,951,000 after acquiring an additional 42,093 shares during the period. Sigma Planning Corp bought a new stake in shares of Ellington Financial in the fourth quarter worth $664,000. Angel Oak Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in Ellington Financial in the fourth quarter valued at about $1,445,000. Finally, GraniteShares Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Ellington Financial in the fourth quarter worth about $2,462,000. 55.62% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Ellington Financial Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:EFC traded up $0.21 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $12.81. 1,068,317 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 979,525. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $12.73 and its 200 day simple moving average is $12.66. The company has a market cap of $1.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.78 and a beta of 1.01. Ellington Financial Inc. has a 52-week low of $11.12 and a 52-week high of $14.40. 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 released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 7th. The financial services provider reported $0.39 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.38 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $82.91 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $107.06 million. Ellington Financial had a net margin of 106.40% and a return on equity of 10.26%. As a group, equities analysts predict that Ellington Financial Inc. will post 1.38 EPS for the current year.

Ellington Financial Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a monthly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 30th will be given a dividend of $0.13 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 30th. This represents a $1.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 12.18%. Ellington Financial's dividend payout ratio is currently 110.64%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have commented on the stock. B. Riley upped their target price on shares of Ellington Financial from $15.00 to $16.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, May 15th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price objective on Ellington Financial from $13.75 to $14.50 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, March 3rd. Finally, UBS Group restated a "neutral" rating on shares of Ellington Financial in a research report on Wednesday, May 14th.

Ellington Financial 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.