Short Interest in Ellington Credit Company (NYSE:EARN) Declines By 33.2%

Key Points

• Short interest in Ellington Credit Company decreased by 33.2% in August, falling from 356,600 shares to 238,300 shares.
• The company recently reported earnings of $0.18 per share, missing the consensus estimate of $0.20, along with a revenue of $9.87 million, below expectations of $12.15 million.
• Ellington Credit declared a monthly dividend of $0.08 per share, yielding 17.0%, with a payout ratio of 533.33%.

Ellington Credit Company (NYSE:EARN - Get Free Report) was the recipient of a significant decline in short interest during the month of August. As of August 15th, there was short interest totaling 238,300 shares, a decline of 33.2% from the July 31st total of 356,600 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 316,900 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 0.8 days. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 316,900 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 0.8 days.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts recently weighed in on EARN shares. Wall Street Zen lowered Ellington Credit from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Saturday, August 30th. UBS Group boosted their price objective on Ellington Credit from $5.50 to $5.75 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 16th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $6.13.

Ellington Credit Stock Down 0.1%

Ellington Credit stock traded down $0.01 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $5.65. The company's stock had a trading volume of 138,817 shares, compared to its average volume of 543,769. The stock has a market capitalization of $212.02 million, a P/E ratio of 31.36 and a beta of 1.31. Ellington Credit has a twelve month low of $4.32 and a twelve month high of $7.11. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $5.79 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $5.68.

Ellington Credit (NYSE:EARN - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 19th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.18 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.20 by ($0.02). The business had revenue of $9.87 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $12.15 million. Ellington Credit had a return on equity of 15.90% and a net margin of 19.24%. Equities analysts expect that Ellington Credit will post 1.17 earnings per share for the current year.

Ellington Credit Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a sep 25 dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 31st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 30th will be given a $0.08 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 30th. This represents a yield of 1,700.0%. Ellington Credit's payout ratio is 533.33%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Bogart Wealth LLC grew its position in Ellington Credit by 62.5% in the second quarter. Bogart Wealth LLC now owns 5,200 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 2,000 shares during the last quarter. Quarry LP purchased a new position in Ellington Credit during the 1st quarter worth approximately $33,000. State of Wyoming purchased a new position in Ellington Credit during the 4th quarter worth approximately $49,000. Quantbot Technologies LP grew its position in Ellington Credit by 211.0% during the 1st quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP now owns 14,016 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $76,000 after purchasing an additional 9,509 shares in the last quarter. Finally, McIlrath & Eck LLC purchased a new position in Ellington Credit during the 4th quarter worth approximately $80,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 20.40% of the company's stock.

About Ellington Credit

Ellington Credit Company, a real estate investment trust, acquires, invests in, and manages residential mortgage-and real estate-related assets. It acquires and manages residential mortgage-backed securities (RMBS), including agency pools and agency collateralized mortgage obligations (CMOs); and non-agency RMBS, such as non-agency CMOs, such as investment grade and non-investment grade.