Annaly Capital Management Target of Unusually High Options Trading (NYSE:NLY)

Annaly Capital Management Inc (NYSE:NLY - Get Free Report) was the target of some unusual options trading on Tuesday. Stock investors bought 26,642 call options on the company. This represents an increase of 147% compared to the typical volume of 10,793 call options.

Annaly Capital Management Price Performance

Shares of NLY stock traded up $0.22 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $19.36. 9,180,090 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,734,724. Annaly Capital Management has a fifty-two week low of $16.60 and a fifty-two week high of $22.11. The stock's fifty day moving average is $19.08 and its two-hundred day moving average is $19.68. The company has a market cap of $11.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.76, a P/E/G ratio of 4.22 and a beta of 1.23.

Annaly Capital Management (NYSE:NLY - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.72 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.71 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $186.64 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $418.04 million. Annaly Capital Management had a return on equity of 15.31% and a net margin of 13.10%. On average, research analysts anticipate that Annaly Capital Management will post 2.81 earnings per share for the current year.

Annaly Capital Management Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 30th will be issued a dividend of $0.70 per share. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 14.46%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 30th. Annaly Capital Management's dividend payout ratio is presently 314.61%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Annaly Capital Management

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its stake in Annaly Capital Management by 10.8% during the 4th quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,285,034 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $23,516,000 after acquiring an additional 124,755 shares during the last quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc boosted its position in shares of Annaly Capital Management by 17.2% during the fourth quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 20,654 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $378,000 after purchasing an additional 3,027 shares in the last quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund grew its holdings in shares of Annaly Capital Management by 3.0% in the 4th quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund now owns 341,784 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $6,255,000 after buying an additional 10,000 shares during the period. Handelsbanken Fonder AB increased its position in shares of Annaly Capital Management by 21.5% in the 4th quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 150,600 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $2,756,000 after buying an additional 26,600 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wolverine Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in Annaly Capital Management during the 4th quarter worth $50,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 51.56% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada lowered their price target on shares of Annaly Capital Management from $22.00 to $21.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, May 27th. Jones Trading reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $21.00 price target on shares of Annaly Capital Management in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on shares of Annaly Capital Management from $21.00 to $19.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. Piper Sandler dropped their target price on Annaly Capital Management from $21.50 to $21.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price target on Annaly Capital Management from $20.15 to $20.50 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $21.00.

Annaly Capital Management Company Profile

Annaly Capital Management, Inc, a diversified capital manager, engages in mortgage finance. The company invests in agency mortgage-backed securities collateralized by residential mortgages; non-agency residential whole loans and securitized products within the residential and commercial markets; mortgage servicing rights; agency commercial mortgage-backed securities; to-be-announced forward contracts; residential mortgage loans; and agency or private label credit risk transfer securities.