Ellington Financial (NYSE:EFC) Releases Earnings Results, Beats Estimates By $0.09 EPS

Ellington Financial (NYSE:EFC) posted its earnings results on Wednesday. The financial services provider reported $0.53 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.44 by $0.09, Zacks reports. The business had revenue of $242.08 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $121.99 million. Ellington Financial had a net margin of 89.52% and a return on equity of 13.56%.

Ellington Financial Trading Down 1.7%

Shares of NYSE:EFC traded down $0.24 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $13.54. The company had a trading volume of 561,322 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,131,181. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 10.96, a current ratio of 46.78 and a quick ratio of 46.78. The company has a market capitalization of $1.35 billion, a PE ratio of 10.92 and a beta of 1.01. Ellington Financial has a one year low of $11.12 and a one year high of $14.40. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $13.43 and a 200 day moving average price of $13.18.

Ellington Financial Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a oct 25 dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 31st will be given a $0.13 dividend. This represents a yield of 1,172.0%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 31st. Ellington Financial’s dividend payout ratio is 125.81%.

Insider Transactions at Ellington Financial

In related news, Director Ronald I. Simon purchased 5,544 shares of Ellington Financial stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 11th. The stock was bought at an average price of $13.56 per share, for a total transaction of $75,176.64. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 80,000 shares in the company, valued at $1,084,800. This represents a 7.45% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 4.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Ellington Financial

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC grew its stake in Ellington Financial by 227.6% in the 2nd quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 6,853 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $89,000 after buying an additional 4,761 shares in the last quarter. Sei Investments Co. purchased a new position in Ellington Financial during the 2nd quarter valued at about $131,000. Quantbot Technologies LP bought a new stake in Ellington Financial during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $138,000. Franklin Resources Inc. purchased a new stake in Ellington Financial in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $166,000. Finally, Creative Planning purchased a new stake in shares of Ellington Financial in the 2nd quarter valued at about $176,000. 55.62% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently commented on the company. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Ellington Financial in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Jones Trading upgraded Ellington Financial from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $14.25 price target on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, August 13th. Zacks Research cut Ellington Financial from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, October 10th. Finally, UBS Group increased their target price on Ellington Financial from $12.50 to $13.50 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 3rd. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $14.46.

About Ellington Financial

Ellington Financial Inc, through its subsidiary, Ellington Financial Operating Partnership LLC, acquires and manages mortgage-related, consumer-related, corporate-related, and other financial assets in the United States. The company acquires and manages residential mortgage-backed securities (RMBS) backed by prime jumbo, Alt-A, manufactured housing, and subprime mortgage; RMBS for which the principal and interest payments are guaranteed by the U.S.