Jacobs Asset Management LLC Sells 114,476 Shares of Ellington Financial Inc. $EFC

Key Points

• Jacobs Asset Management LLC significantly reduced its stake in Ellington Financial Inc. by selling 114,476 shares, now holding only 12,500 shares, which drop represents a 90.2% decrease in their position.
• Ellington Financial Inc. is experiencing strong institutional interest, with firms like Vanguard Group Inc. and MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS increasing their holdings, resulting in 55.62% of the stock being owned by institutional investors.
• The company recently announced a monthly dividend of $0.13 per share, with a high dividend yield of 11.3%, although the payout ratio stands at 125.81%.

Jacobs Asset Management LLC cut its position in Ellington Financial Inc. (NYSE:EFC - Free Report) by 90.2% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 12,500 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 114,476 shares during the period. Jacobs Asset Management LLC's holdings in Ellington Financial were worth $166,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. California State Teachers Retirement System lifted its position in shares of Ellington Financial by 1.1% during the fourth quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 81,097 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $983,000 after purchasing an additional 873 shares in the last quarter. Corebridge Financial Inc. lifted its position in shares of Ellington Financial by 2.0% during the first quarter. Corebridge Financial Inc. now owns 46,054 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $611,000 after purchasing an additional 893 shares in the last quarter. Arizona State Retirement System lifted 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 purchasing an additional 1,052 shares in the last quarter. Sigma Planning Corp lifted 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 purchasing an additional 1,510 shares in the last quarter. Finally, CenterStar Asset Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Ellington Financial by 14.6% during the first quarter. CenterStar Asset Management LLC now owns 12,828 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $170,000 after purchasing an additional 1,638 shares in the last quarter. 55.62% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Ellington Financial Trading Down 0.8%

NYSE:EFC traded down $0.11 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $13.65. The stock had a trading volume of 1,236,904 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,279,583. Ellington Financial Inc. has a one year low of $11.12 and a one year high of $14.40. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 10.96, a quick ratio of 46.78 and a current ratio of 46.78. The company has a market cap of $1.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.00 and a beta of 1.00. The business's 50 day moving average is $13.26 and its 200-day moving average is $13.02.

Ellington Financial (NYSE:EFC - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, August 7th. The financial services provider reported $0.47 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.40 by $0.07. Ellington Financial had a net margin of 89.52% and a return on equity of 13.56%. The firm had revenue of $92.54 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $112.48 million. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Ellington Financial Inc. will post 1.38 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ellington Financial Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a monthly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 30th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 29th will be paid a $0.13 dividend. This represents a c) annualized dividend and a yield of 11.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 29th. Ellington Financial's dividend payout ratio is presently 125.81%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently weighed in on EFC. Piper Sandler dropped their price target 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. B. Riley boosted their price target on shares of Ellington Financial from $15.00 to $16.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 15th. Jones Trading raised shares of Ellington Financial from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $14.25 price target for the company in a research note on Wednesday, August 13th. UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of Ellington Financial from $12.00 to $12.50 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 10th. Finally, Zacks Research raised shares of Ellington Financial to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 12th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have given a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Ellington Financial has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $14.29.

About Ellington Financial

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.