Goldman Sachs Group Inc. Buys 96,365 Shares of MFA Financial, Inc. $MFA

Key Points

• Goldman Sachs Group Inc. has increased its stake in MFA Financial, Inc. by 16.2%, owning approximately 691,408 shares valued at $7,094,000.
• MFA Financial reported earnings per share (EPS) of $0.24 for the last quarter, missing analysts' estimates of $0.29, while the company had a revenue of $61.28 million.
• The firm announced a quarterly dividend of $0.36 per share, translating to an annualized dividend of $1.44 and a yield of 14.3%.

Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its stake in MFA Financial, Inc. (NYSE:MFA - Free Report) by 16.2% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 691,408 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after purchasing an additional 96,365 shares during the quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. owned about 0.67% of MFA Financial worth $7,094,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Golden State Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of MFA Financial in the first quarter valued at approximately $25,000. MQS Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of MFA Financial during the first quarter worth approximately $131,000. State of Wyoming acquired a new position in shares of MFA Financial during the fourth quarter worth approximately $137,000. PharVision Advisers LLC purchased a new stake in MFA Financial in the 4th quarter valued at $140,000. Finally, EntryPoint Capital LLC purchased a new stake in MFA Financial in the 1st quarter valued at $144,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.28% of the company's stock.

MFA Financial Trading Up 1.1%

Shares of MFA stock traded up $0.10 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $9.83. The company's stock had a trading volume of 525,276 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,293,061. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.01 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.30 and a beta of 1.68. MFA Financial, Inc. has a one year low of $7.85 and a one year high of $13.20. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $9.69 and its 200 day simple moving average is $9.71.

MFA Financial (NYSE:MFA - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 6th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.24 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.29 by ($0.05). MFA Financial had a return on equity of 8.61% and a net margin of 17.62%.The business had revenue of $61.28 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $59.50 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.32 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that MFA Financial, Inc. will post 1.5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

MFA Financial Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 31st. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 30th will be given a dividend of $0.36 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 30th. This represents a $1.44 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 14.6%. MFA Financial's payout ratio is currently 165.52%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MFA has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Jones Trading reaffirmed a "hold" rating on shares of MFA Financial in a research report on Monday, August 11th. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $10.00 target price on MFA Financial and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 28th. UBS Group restated a "buy" rating on shares of MFA Financial in a research note on Wednesday, September 3rd. JMP Securities lowered their price target on MFA Financial from $12.00 to $11.00 and set a "market outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, July 17th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut MFA Financial from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating and decreased their price objective for the company from $12.00 to $10.00 in a report on Thursday, July 10th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $11.75.

MFA Financial Company Profile

MFA Financial, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a real estate investment trust in the United States. It invests in residential mortgage securities, including non-agency mortgage-backed securities, agency MBS, and credit risk transfer securities; residential whole loans, including purchased performing loans, purchased credit deteriorated, and non-performing loans; and mortgage servicing rights related assets.