202,500 Shares in MFA Financial, Inc. $MFA Acquired by Simplify Asset Management Inc.

Simplify Asset Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of MFA Financial, Inc. (NYSE:MFA) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund bought 202,500 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock, valued at approximately $1,885,000. Simplify Asset Management Inc. owned approximately 0.20% of MFA Financial at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MFA. Citigroup Inc. increased its holdings in shares of MFA Financial by 440.1% during the third quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 1,345,561 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $12,366,000 after purchasing an additional 1,096,443 shares during the period. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. increased its stake in MFA Financial by 53.1% during the 2nd quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. now owns 2,820,393 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $26,681,000 after buying an additional 977,820 shares during the period. First Trust Advisors LP raised its position in shares of MFA Financial by 152.8% during the 2nd quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 1,022,065 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $9,669,000 after buying an additional 617,759 shares in the last quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP raised its position in shares of MFA Financial by 112.1% during the 3rd quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP now owns 778,019 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $7,150,000 after buying an additional 411,128 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wolverine Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of MFA Financial by 9.2% in the 4th quarter. Wolverine Asset Management LLC now owns 1,653,062 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $15,390,000 after acquiring an additional 139,559 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.28% of the company’s stock.

MFA Financial Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:MFA opened at $9.48 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $962.66 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.89 and a beta of 1.47. MFA Financial, Inc. has a 1-year low of $8.78 and a 1-year high of $10.56. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $9.82 and a 200 day moving average price of $9.73.

MFA Financial (NYSE:MFA) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.30 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.31 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $43.31 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $67.52 million. MFA Financial had a net margin of 17.80% and a return on equity of 6.86%. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.29 EPS.

MFA Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 30th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 31st were issued a dividend of $0.36 per share. This represents a $1.44 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 15.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 31st. MFA Financial’s dividend payout ratio is currently 165.52%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MFA has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Citizens Jmp boosted their target price on MFA Financial from $11.00 to $11.50 and gave the stock a “market outperform” rating in a report on Monday, May 4th. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their price target on MFA Financial from $10.00 to $11.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 5th. Citigroup reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of MFA Financial in a research note on Monday, May 4th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their price objective on MFA Financial from $11.00 to $10.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of MFA Financial in a research note on Wednesday, April 15th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, MFA Financial presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $10.69.

MFA Financial Company Profile

MFA Financial, Inc, headquartered in New York City, is a real estate investment trust that specializes in investing in residential mortgage loans and mortgage-related securities. The company’s primary objective is to generate attractive risk-adjusted returns through net interest income and capital appreciation. As a mortgage REIT, MFA Financial focuses on constructing a diversified portfolio of agency and non-agency residential mortgage assets, leveraging its expertise in acquiring, financing and servicing mortgage products.

MFA Financial’s investment portfolio encompasses a wide range of mortgage instruments, including adjustable-rate and fixed-rate mortgage loans, interest-only securities, and agency mortgage-backed securities guaranteed by government-sponsored entities.