Short Interest in Two Harbors Investments Corp (NYSE:TWO) Rises By 85,814.0%

Key Points

• Short interest in Two Harbors Investments Corp surged by 85,814.0% in July, rising to nearly 8 million shares, indicating a significant shift in investor sentiment toward the stock.
• The company reported earnings of $0.28 per share for the quarter, meeting analyst estimates, despite a negative net margin of 67.06%.
• Two Harbors Investments recently announced a dividend of $0.39 per share, resulting in an annualized yield of 15.9%, but has a negative dividend payout ratio of -43.82%.

Two Harbors Investments Corp (NYSE:TWO - Get Free Report) was the target of a large increase in short interest during the month of July. As of July 15th, there was short interest totaling 7,990,000 shares, anincreaseof85,814.0% from the June 30th total of 9,300 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 1,890,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 4.2 days. Approximately7.8% of the company's stock are short sold. Approximately7.8% of the company's stock are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 1,890,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 4.2 days.

Two Harbors Investments Price Performance

Two Harbors Investments stock traded up $0.05 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $9.80. 1,904,007 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,676,132. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.08, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a current ratio of 1.07. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.02 billion, a P/E ratio of -2.75 and a beta of 1.26. Two Harbors Investments has a 12 month low of $9.67 and a 12 month high of $14.28. The business's 50-day moving average is $10.52 and its two-hundred day moving average is $11.82.

Two Harbors Investments (NYSE:TWO - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Monday, July 28th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.28 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting analysts' consensus estimates of $0.28. Two Harbors Investments had a negative net margin of 67.06% and a positive return on equity of 9.39%. The company had revenue of ($18.12) million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of ($23.29) million. Equities research analysts expect that Two Harbors Investments will post 0.81 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Two Harbors Investments Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, July 29th. Investors of record on Thursday, July 3rd were issued a $0.39 dividend. This represents a $1.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 15.9%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, July 3rd. Two Harbors Investments's dividend payout ratio is currently -43.82%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have weighed in on TWO shares. Maxim Group cut their target price on shares of Two Harbors Investments from $15.00 to $12.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Two Harbors Investments from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 30th. JMP Securities reaffirmed a "market perform" rating on shares of Two Harbors Investments in a research report on Thursday, July 3rd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price objective on shares of Two Harbors Investments from $12.95 to $13.25 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 30th. Finally, UBS Group cut their price objective on shares of Two Harbors Investments from $13.00 to $12.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, July 10th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $12.88.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Two Harbors Investments

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of TWO. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in Two Harbors Investments in the fourth quarter worth $172,000. Sei Investments Co. increased its position in shares of Two Harbors Investments by 1.3% during the fourth quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 139,995 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $1,656,000 after acquiring an additional 1,770 shares in the last quarter. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS bought a new stake in shares of Two Harbors Investments during the fourth quarter worth $284,000. LPL Financial LLC increased its position in shares of Two Harbors Investments by 18.8% during the fourth quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 117,994 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $1,396,000 after acquiring an additional 18,682 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Two Harbors Investments by 3.0% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 11,490,101 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $135,928,000 after acquiring an additional 329,762 shares in the last quarter. 64.19% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Two Harbors Investments

Two Harbors Investment Corp. invests in, finances, and manages mortgage servicing rights (MSRs), agency residential mortgage-backed securities (RMBS), and other financial assets through RoundPoint in the United States. The company target assets include agency RMBS collateralized by fixed rate mortgage loans, adjustable rate mortgage loans, hybrid mortgage loans, or derivatives; and other assets, such as financial and mortgage-related assets, including non-agency securities and non-hedging transactions.

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