Ellington Credit Company (NYSE:EARN) Shares Shorted: Short Interest Down 50.8% in October

Key Points

• Short interest fell 50.8% to 370,210 shares as of October 15, representing 1.0% of Ellington Credit’s outstanding shares and only 0.6 days of average trading volume.
• Institutional investors own 20.4% of the company, with several firms increasing their positions. Piper Sandler lowered its price target to $4.50 but maintained an “overweight” rating; analysts’ consensus remains “Buy” with a $5.25 target.
• Ellington Credit shares declined 4.1% to $3.49, while the company reported weaker-than-expected quarterly results. It announced a monthly dividend of $0.08, equivalent to a 27.5% annualized yield.

Ellington Credit Company (NYSE:EARN - Get Free Report) was the recipient of a significant decrease in short interest in the month of October. As of October 15th, there was short interest totaling 370,210 shares, a decrease of 50.8% from the September 30th total of 752,067 shares. Currently, 1.0% of the shares of the company are short sold. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 640,420 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 0.6 days.

Institutional Trading of Ellington Credit

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. McIlrath & Eck LLC raised its position in shares of Ellington Credit by 122.4% in the first quarter. McIlrath & Eck LLC now owns 10,969 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $49,000 after buying an additional 6,038 shares in the last quarter. Focus Financial Network Inc. acquired a new stake in Ellington Credit during the second quarter worth approximately $154,000. Finally, Waverly Advisors LLC grew its position in Ellington Credit by 85.8% during the first quarter. Waverly Advisors LLC now owns 167,250 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $741,000 after buying an additional 77,250 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 20.40% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, Piper Sandler decreased their target price on Ellington Credit from $5.00 to $4.50 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, October 19th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $5.25.

Ellington Credit Stock Down 4.1%

Shares of Ellington Credit stock traded down $0.15 on Friday, hitting $3.49. The stock had a trading volume of 455,497 shares, compared to its average volume of 560,868. The stock has a market cap of $133.22 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -3.56 and a beta of 1.32. Ellington Credit has a twelve month low of $3.22 and a twelve month high of $5.72. The business's 50 day moving average is $3.98 and its two-hundred day moving average is $4.54.

Ellington Credit (NYSE:EARN - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 12th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.20 by ($0.05). The company had revenue of $6.08 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.57 million.

Ellington Credit Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a monthly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 30th. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 30th will be paid a $0.08 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 30th. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 27.5%. Ellington Credit's payout ratio is -97.96%.

About Ellington Credit

Ellington Credit Corporation NYSE: EARN is a real estate investment trust focused primarily on residential mortgage credit. The company invests in residential mortgage-backed securities, residential mortgage loans and other residential real estate-related assets, with an emphasis on credit-sensitive investments that may offer exposure to different segments of the housing finance market.

Ellington Credit is externally managed by Ellington Residential Mortgage LP, an affiliate of Ellington Management Group.

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