MFA Financial, Inc. (NYSE:MFA) Given Average Rating of "Hold" by Analysts

Key Points

• Analysts have a “Hold” consensus on MFA Financial, with four buy, three hold, and one sell rating; the average 1-year price target is $10.45 versus a recent price of $9.18.
• MFA Financial reported quarterly EPS of $0.30, slightly below the $0.31 consensus, while revenue of $43.3 million fell well short of the $67.52 million estimate.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.36, equivalent to an annualized yield of approximately 15.7%, though its payout ratio is elevated at 165.52%.

Shares of MFA Financial, Inc. (NYSE:MFA - Get Free Report) have received an average recommendation of "Hold" from the eight research firms that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, three have issued a hold recommendation and four have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year price target among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $10.45.

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on MFA. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their target price on shares of MFA Financial from $11.00 to $10.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. Citizens Jmp lifted their price target on MFA Financial from $11.00 to $11.50 and gave the stock a "market outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, May 4th. Weiss Ratings cut MFA Financial from a "hold (c-)" rating to a "sell (d+)" rating in a research note on Monday, July 6th. BTIG Research upgraded MFA Financial from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $10.50 price objective on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, June 17th. Finally, Citigroup reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of MFA Financial in a research note on Monday, May 4th.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of MFA. Quarry LP purchased a new stake in shares of MFA Financial in the third quarter valued at $27,000. Headlands Technologies LLC lifted its holdings in shares of MFA Financial by 62.3% in the 2nd quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC now owns 2,992 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 1,149 shares during the last quarter. Optiver Holding B.V. purchased a new position in shares of MFA Financial during the 1st quarter worth about $29,000. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its stake in shares of MFA Financial by 86.1% during the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 4,530 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $42,000 after purchasing an additional 2,096 shares during the period. Finally, US Bancorp DE grew its holdings in MFA Financial by 540.5% during the 3rd quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 5,925 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $54,000 after purchasing an additional 5,000 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 65.28% of the company's stock.

MFA Financial Stock Up 0.1%

MFA Financial stock opened at $9.18 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $932.69 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.55 and a beta of 1.41. The firm's fifty day moving average is $9.41 and its 200 day moving average is $9.71. MFA Financial has a 52-week low of $8.78 and a 52-week high of $10.56.

MFA Financial (NYSE:MFA - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 5th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.30 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.31 by ($0.01). MFA Financial had a return on equity of 6.86% and a net margin of 17.80%.The business had revenue of $43.30 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $67.52 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.29 earnings per share.

MFA Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 31st. Investors of record on Tuesday, June 30th will be given a $0.36 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, June 30th. This represents a $1.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 15.7%. MFA Financial's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 165.52%.

About MFA Financial

MFA Financial, Inc, headquartered in New York City, is a real estate investment trust that specializes in investing in residential mortgage loans and mortgage-related securities. The company's primary objective is to generate attractive risk-adjusted returns through net interest income and capital appreciation. As a mortgage REIT, MFA Financial focuses on constructing a diversified portfolio of agency and non-agency residential mortgage assets, leveraging its expertise in acquiring, financing and servicing mortgage products.

MFA Financial's investment portfolio encompasses a wide range of mortgage instruments, including adjustable-rate and fixed-rate mortgage loans, interest-only securities, and agency mortgage-backed securities guaranteed by government-sponsored entities.

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