Public Sector Pension Investment Board Purchases 61,672 Shares of Ellington Financial Inc. $EFC

Key Points

• The Public Sector Pension Investment Board increased its stake in Ellington Financial Inc. by 27.3%, now holding 287,523 shares valued at approximately $3.81 million.
• Analysts have varied outlooks on Ellington Financial, with target prices ranging from $12.50 to $16.00, and a consensus price target of $14.29.
• Ellington Financial recently declared a monthly dividend of $0.13 per share, yielding 11.4%, despite a dividend payout ratio of 125.81%.

Public Sector Pension Investment Board raised its position in Ellington Financial Inc. (NYSE:EFC - Free Report) by 27.3% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 287,523 shares of the financial services provider's stock after buying an additional 61,672 shares during the period. Public Sector Pension Investment Board owned 0.30% of Ellington Financial worth $3,813,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in EFC. Sterling Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Ellington Financial by 814.9% in the fourth quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 2,644 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 2,355 shares in the last quarter. State of Wyoming acquired a new position in shares of Ellington Financial during the fourth quarter worth approximately $56,000. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its position in shares of Ellington Financial by 243.8% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 4,800 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $64,000 after purchasing an additional 3,404 shares in the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc lifted its position in shares of Ellington Financial by 1,824.5% during the first quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 5,581 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $74,000 after purchasing an additional 5,291 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mariner LLC acquired a new position in shares of Ellington Financial during the fourth quarter worth approximately $143,000. 55.62% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Ellington Financial Trading Up 2.4%

Shares of EFC traded up $0.3340 on Friday, reaching $14.0240. 1,240,987 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,253,254. 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 46.78, a quick ratio of 46.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 10.96. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.40 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.31 and a beta of 1.00. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $13.16 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $12.98.

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. Research analysts anticipate that Ellington Financial Inc. will post 1.38 earnings per share for the current year.

Ellington Financial Announces Dividend

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 11.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 29th. Ellington Financial's dividend payout ratio is presently 125.81%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on EFC. Piper Sandler reduced their target price on shares of Ellington Financial from $15.00 to $14.50 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, July 1st. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Ellington Financial to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 12th. UBS Group upped their target price on shares of Ellington Financial from $12.00 to $12.50 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 10th. Jones Trading upgraded shares of Ellington Financial from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $14.25 target price on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, August 13th. Finally, B. Riley upped their target price on shares of Ellington Financial from $15.00 to $16.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 15th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have issued a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $14.29.

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.