MFA Financial, Inc. (NYSE:MFA) Short Interest Up 30.5% in March

Key Points

• Short interest jumped 30.5% in March to 3,348,824 shares (about 3.3% of shares short), leaving a days-to-cover ratio of 2.0 based on average daily volume.
• Generous but potentially unsustainable dividend: MFA declared a $0.36 quarterly dividend (annualized $1.44) for a 14.1% yield, while the dividend payout ratio is a high 111.63%.
• Mixed earnings and a neutral analyst stance: Q4 EPS matched consensus at $0.27 while revenue beat at $88.7M versus $60.6M expected, and analysts maintain a consensus "Hold" with a $10.81 price target as the stock trades near $10.23.

MFA Financial, Inc. (NYSE:MFA - Get Free Report) was the recipient of a significant growth in short interest in the month of March. As of March 31st, there was short interest totaling 3,348,824 shares, a growth of 30.5% from the March 15th total of 2,565,417 shares. Approximately 3.3% of the shares of the company are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 1,670,579 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 2.0 days.

MFA Financial Trading Up 2.9%

Shares of MFA stock traded up $0.29 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $10.23. The stock had a trading volume of 1,504,126 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,441,747. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $9.91 and its 200 day simple moving average is $9.61. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.04 billion, a PE ratio of 7.93 and a beta of 1.54. MFA Financial has a 12 month low of $8.65 and a 12 month high of $10.56.

MFA Financial (NYSE:MFA - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 18th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.27 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.27. The business had revenue of $88.72 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $60.56 million. MFA Financial had a net margin of 23.73% and a return on equity of 6.67%. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.39 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that MFA Financial will post 1.5 EPS for the current fiscal year.

MFA Financial Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 30th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 31st will be issued a $0.36 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 31st. This represents a $1.44 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 14.1%. MFA Financial's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 111.63%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On MFA Financial

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Corient Private Wealth LLC boosted its stake in shares of MFA Financial by 2.0% in the 4th quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 107,767 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $1,003,000 after purchasing an additional 2,149 shares in the last quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV lifted its position in MFA Financial by 8.5% in the fourth quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV now owns 40,882 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $381,000 after purchasing an additional 3,211 shares during the last quarter. XTX Topco Ltd boosted its position in MFA Financial by 190.4% during the 4th quarter. XTX Topco Ltd now owns 100,745 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $938,000 after buying an additional 66,048 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its stake in shares of MFA Financial by 25.1% during the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 760,910 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $7,084,000 after acquiring an additional 152,718 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Tudor Investment Corp ET AL purchased a new stake in shares of MFA Financial during the fourth quarter worth about $2,523,000. 65.28% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently commented on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price target on shares of MFA Financial from $10.00 to $11.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Thursday, March 5th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their target price on MFA Financial from $10.00 to $11.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research report on Friday, February 20th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "hold (c-)" rating on shares of MFA Financial in a report on Wednesday. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $10.81.

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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