Annaly Capital Management (NYSE:NLY) Lowered to “Hold” at StockNews.com

Annaly Capital Management (NYSE:NLY) was downgraded by StockNews.com from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note issued to investors on Thursday.

A number of other equities analysts have also recently issued reports on the company. Janney Montgomery Scott initiated coverage on Annaly Capital Management in a report on Thursday, June 6th. They set a “buy” rating and a $21.00 target price for the company. Jonestrading reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $21.00 target price on shares of Annaly Capital Management in a research report on Thursday, April 25th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $21.50 target price on shares of Annaly Capital Management in a research note on Wednesday, March 27th. Compass Point began coverage on shares of Annaly Capital Management in a research note on Tuesday, April 2nd. They set a “buy” rating and a $22.00 price target for the company. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of Annaly Capital Management from $20.00 to $21.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 16th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $21.06.

Annaly Capital Management Price Performance

Shares of Annaly Capital Management stock traded down $0.28 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $19.62. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 4,772,015 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,562,008. The company has a market capitalization of $9.82 billion, a PE ratio of -20.23 and a beta of 1.54. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $19.76 and a 200 day moving average of $19.41. Annaly Capital Management has a 12 month low of $14.52 and a 12 month high of $21.07.

Annaly Capital Management (NYSE:NLY) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, July 24th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.68 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.66 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $1.18 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $318.00 million. Annaly Capital Management had a negative net margin of 8.38% and a positive return on equity of 15.13%. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.72 EPS. Equities analysts expect that Annaly Capital Management will post 2.63 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Annaly Capital Management

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Annaly Capital Management in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $110,244,000. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. lifted its holdings in Annaly Capital Management by 159.7% during the 4th quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. now owns 6,118,940 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $118,524,000 after purchasing an additional 3,762,652 shares during the last quarter. Algebris UK Ltd boosted its position in Annaly Capital Management by 195.9% during the first quarter. Algebris UK Ltd now owns 4,034,821 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $87,532,000 after purchasing an additional 2,671,236 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Annaly Capital Management by 3.4% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 49,300,019 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $954,941,000 after purchasing an additional 1,619,729 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Victory Capital Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Annaly Capital Management by 1,505.6% in the fourth quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,676,931 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $32,482,000 after purchasing an additional 1,572,487 shares during the period. 51.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.