ARMOUR Residential REIT, Inc. (NYSE:ARR) Short Interest Down 21.9% in January

ARMOUR Residential REIT, Inc. (NYSE:ARR) saw a significant decrease in short interest in January. As of January 30th, there was short interest totaling 10,127,985 shares, a decrease of 21.9% from the January 15th total of 12,969,540 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 3,895,720 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 2.6 days. Approximately 9.1% of the company’s shares are sold short. Approximately 9.1% of the company’s shares are sold short. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 3,895,720 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 2.6 days.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently weighed in on ARR. Zacks Research raised ARMOUR Residential REIT from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, January 16th. Jones Trading upgraded shares of ARMOUR Residential REIT from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $20.50 target price on the stock in a report on Friday, January 16th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d)” rating on shares of ARMOUR Residential REIT in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. Finally, Compass Point initiated coverage on shares of ARMOUR Residential REIT in a research report on Monday, December 15th. They set a “buy” rating and a $18.50 price target for the company. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $18.33.

ARMOUR Residential REIT Stock Up 0.9%

Shares of NYSE:ARR traded up $0.17 on Friday, hitting $18.31. 5,098,541 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,451,177. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $17.84 and a 200-day simple moving average of $16.53. The company has a market cap of $2.05 billion, a PE ratio of 457.65 and a beta of 1.46. ARMOUR Residential REIT has a 52 week low of $13.18 and a 52 week high of $19.31.

ARMOUR Residential REIT Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a monthly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 27th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 17th will be paid a dividend of $0.24 per share. This represents a c) dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 15.7%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, February 17th. ARMOUR Residential REIT’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 7,200.00%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other ARMOUR Residential REIT news, Director Robert C. Hain sold 6,833 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 owned 1,010 shares in the company, valued at approximately $18,240.60. This represents a 87.12% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.35% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On ARMOUR Residential REIT

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in ARR. Royal Bank of Canada raised its holdings in ARMOUR Residential REIT by 50.3% in the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 122,055 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $2,088,000 after acquiring an additional 40,860 shares during the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of ARMOUR Residential REIT by 26.1% in the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 14,393 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $246,000 after purchasing an additional 2,980 shares during the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of ARMOUR Residential REIT by 38.2% during the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 807,027 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $13,800,000 after purchasing an additional 222,923 shares in the last quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC boosted its position in shares of ARMOUR Residential REIT by 189.5% during the first quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 92,237 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $1,577,000 after buying an additional 60,371 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Strs Ohio bought a new stake in ARMOUR Residential REIT in the 1st quarter worth about $181,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 54.17% of the company’s stock.

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.