Plato Investment Management Ltd Raises Position in Annaly Capital Management, Inc. (NYSE:NLY)

Plato Investment Management Ltd lifted its stake in shares of Annaly Capital Management, Inc. (NYSE:NLY) by 370.1% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 21,147 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after buying an additional 16,649 shares during the period. Plato Investment Management Ltd’s holdings in Annaly Capital Management were worth $388,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Avior Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in Annaly Capital Management by 209.9% during the 3rd quarter. Avior Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,255 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 850 shares during the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its position in shares of Annaly Capital Management by 78.5% during the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,630 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 717 shares in the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its position in Annaly Capital Management by 29.3% in the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 2,425 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $45,000 after purchasing an additional 549 shares in the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. grew its position in Annaly Capital Management by 65.7% in the 4th quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 2,598 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $48,000 after purchasing an additional 1,030 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Spectrum Wealth Counsel LLC increased its stake in Annaly Capital Management by 1,379.3% in the 4th quarter. Spectrum Wealth Counsel LLC now owns 2,722 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $50,000 after buying an additional 2,538 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 51.56% of the company’s stock.

Annaly Capital Management Stock Performance

NLY stock opened at $21.43 on Wednesday. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $19.99 and a 200-day moving average of $19.89. Annaly Capital Management, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $17.67 and a fifty-two week high of $22.05. The company has a market capitalization of $12.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.47, a PEG ratio of 4.89 and a beta of 1.53.

Annaly Capital Management (NYSE:NLY) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.72 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.67 by $0.05. Annaly Capital Management had a net margin of 20.70% and a return on equity of 14.95%. Equities analysts predict that Annaly Capital Management, Inc. will post 2.81 EPS for the current year.

Annaly Capital Management Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 31st. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 31st were issued a $0.65 dividend. This represents a $2.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 12.14%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, December 31st. Annaly Capital Management’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 163.52%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $22.00 target price on shares of Annaly Capital Management in a report on Monday, February 10th. JMP Securities reissued a “market perform” rating on shares of Annaly Capital Management in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Barclays started coverage on Annaly Capital Management in a research report on Monday, January 6th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $19.00 target price for the company. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of Annaly Capital Management from $19.00 to $21.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $21.44.

About Annaly Capital Management

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.