MFA Financial (NYSE:MFA) Hits New 12-Month Low – Here’s Why

MFA Financial, Inc. (NYSE:MFA)’s stock price hit a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Wednesday. The stock traded as low as $5.88 and last traded at $5.9350, with a volume of 255,071 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $5.97.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MFA has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. BTIG Research restated a “buy” rating and issued a $9.50 target price (down from $10.50) on shares of MFA Financial in a research note on Tuesday, October 6th. William Blair set a $11.00 price target on MFA Financial in a research note on Tuesday, August 4th. Citigroup reiterated a “market outperform” rating on shares of MFA Financial in a report on Thursday, October 15th. Royal Bank Of Canada lowered their price objective on MFA Financial from $10.00 to $7.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday. Finally, Weiss Ratings lowered MFA Financial from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “sell (d)” rating in a research report on Friday, October 9th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, MFA Financial has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $9.29.

MFA Financial Stock Down 4.9%

The firm has a market cap of $561.33 million, a PE ratio of 4.75 and a beta of 1.51. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $7.35 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $9.03.

MFA Financial (NYSE:MFA) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, November 4th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.29 by ($0.03). MFA Financial had a negative net margin of 1.48% and a positive return on equity of 9.82%. The business had revenue of ($84.47) million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $59.52 million.

MFA Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, October 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, October 5th were paid a dividend of $0.36 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, October 5th. This represents a $1.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 25.9%. MFA Financial’s payout ratio is presently -266.67%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On MFA Financial

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in MFA. Wedbush Securities Inc. raised its position in shares of MFA Financial by 12.8% in the 3rd quarter. Wedbush Securities Inc. now owns 16,067 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $126,000 after purchasing an additional 1,823 shares during the last quarter. Jennison Associates LLC boosted its stake in MFA Financial by 2.8% in the 1st quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 74,929 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $718,000 after purchasing an additional 2,074 shares in the last quarter. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. boosted its stake in MFA Financial by 109.4% in the 2nd quarter. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. now owns 4,325 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $41,000 after purchasing an additional 2,260 shares in the last quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC bought a new position in MFA Financial in the 2nd quarter worth about $26,000. Finally, Kingswood Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in MFA Financial by 11.1% during the 3rd quarter. Kingswood Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 30,000 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $236,000 after purchasing an additional 3,000 shares during the last quarter. 65.28% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About MFA Financial

MFA Financial, Inc. is a real estate investment trust focused on residential mortgage assets. The company invests in mortgage-backed securities and residential mortgage loans, including loans that it acquires or originates. Its portfolio includes agency and non-agency mortgage-backed securities, as well as whole loans secured by residential properties. Through its subsidiary Lima One Capital, MFA also provides financing to real estate investors, including loans for property renovation and rental housing.