ARMOUR Residential REIT, Inc. (NYSE:ARR) Sees Significant Increase in Short Interest

ARMOUR Residential REIT, Inc. (NYSE:ARR) saw a large increase in short interest in the month of January. As of January 15th, there was short interest totaling 12,969,540 shares, an increase of 25.8% from the December 31st total of 10,312,027 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 4,703,449 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 2.8 days. Currently, 11.6% of the shares of the company are sold short. Currently, 11.6% of the shares of the company are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 4,703,449 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 2.8 days.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Robert C. Hain sold 6,833 shares of ARMOUR Residential REIT stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $18.06, for a total transaction of $123,403.98. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 1,010 shares in the company, valued at approximately $18,240.60. The trade was a 87.12% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.23% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in ARR. Ameritas Investment Partners Inc. lifted its position in shares of ARMOUR Residential REIT by 10.2% in the third quarter. Ameritas Investment Partners Inc. now owns 9,283 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $139,000 after buying an additional 859 shares in the last quarter. Kovack Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in ARMOUR Residential REIT by 3.1% during the 3rd quarter. Kovack Advisors Inc. now owns 29,504 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $441,000 after buying an additional 889 shares in the last quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System increased its stake in ARMOUR Residential REIT by 1.8% in the 2nd quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 60,209 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $1,012,000 after acquiring an additional 1,039 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its stake in ARMOUR Residential REIT by 217.5% in the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,721 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 1,179 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Signaturefd LLC raised its holdings in shares of ARMOUR Residential REIT by 210.9% during the 4th quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 1,766 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 1,198 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 54.17% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently commented on ARR shares. Compass Point initiated coverage on ARMOUR Residential REIT in a research note on Monday, December 15th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $18.50 price objective on the stock. UBS Group restated a “neutral” rating and set a $16.00 target price on shares of ARMOUR Residential REIT in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Jones Trading raised shares of ARMOUR Residential REIT from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $20.50 price objective for the company in a research note on Friday, January 16th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of ARMOUR Residential REIT from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, January 16th. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d)” rating on shares of ARMOUR Residential REIT in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $18.33.

ARMOUR Residential REIT Stock Performance

ARR traded up $0.29 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $17.35. 3,215,462 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,067,325. The company has a market cap of $1.94 billion, a P/E ratio of 433.63 and a beta of 1.46. ARMOUR Residential REIT has a 12-month low of $13.18 and a 12-month high of $19.31. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $17.79 and a 200 day simple moving average of $16.47.

ARMOUR Residential REIT Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a monthly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 27th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 17th will be issued a $0.24 dividend. This represents a c) dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 16.6%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, February 17th. ARMOUR Residential REIT’s payout ratio is currently 7,200.00%.

About ARMOUR Residential REIT

ARMOUR Residential REIT (NYSE:ARR) is a mortgage real estate investment trust that was formed in 2008 to acquire and manage a portfolio of residential mortgage-backed securities (RMBS). The company’s investments are primarily agency-sponsored and agency-guaranteed RMBS issued by U.S. government-sponsored enterprises, along with credit risk transfer securities and select non-agency residential and multifamily RMBS. By focusing on high-quality mortgage assets, ARMOUR Residential REIT seeks to generate stable income and preserve capital through diversified exposure to the U.S.