Ellington Financial (NYSE:EFC) Downgraded to Sell Rating by Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen cut shares of Ellington Financial (NYSE:EFC) from a hold rating to a sell rating in a report issued on Saturday.

Separately, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Ellington Financial in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $14.56.

Ellington Financial Stock Performance

NYSE EFC opened at $12.04 on Friday. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $13.15 and its 200 day simple moving average is $13.42. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.79 and a beta of 0.95. The company has a current ratio of 47.25, a quick ratio of 50.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 11.02. Ellington Financial has a 1 year low of $11.12 and a 1 year high of $14.12.

Ellington Financial (NYSE:EFC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 25th. The financial services provider reported $0.47 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.44 by $0.03. Ellington Financial had a net margin of 53.10% and a return on equity of 14.62%. The business had revenue of $96.44 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $132.07 million. As a group, research analysts expect that Ellington Financial will post 1.38 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ellington Financial Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a monthly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Investors of record on Friday, February 27th will be paid a $0.13 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 27th. This represents a c) annualized dividend and a yield of 13.0%. Ellington Financial’s dividend payout ratio is presently 126.83%.

Institutional Trading of Ellington Financial

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund lifted its stake in shares of Ellington Financial by 3.7% in the 3rd quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund now owns 22,464 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $292,000 after acquiring an additional 800 shares during the last quarter. Bank of Montreal Can grew its position in Ellington Financial by 6.2% during the 2nd quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 15,170 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $197,000 after acquiring an additional 888 shares during the last quarter. Amalgamated Bank grew its position in Ellington Financial by 3.5% during the 2nd quarter. Amalgamated Bank now owns 26,688 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $347,000 after acquiring an additional 897 shares during the last quarter. Motiv8 Investments LLC increased its holdings in Ellington Financial by 7.9% in the 4th quarter. Motiv8 Investments LLC now owns 13,664 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $186,000 after purchasing an additional 1,002 shares in the last quarter. Finally, MGO One Seven LLC increased its holdings in Ellington Financial by 5.9% in the 4th quarter. MGO One Seven LLC now owns 18,147 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $246,000 after purchasing an additional 1,010 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 55.62% of the company’s stock.

About Ellington Financial

Ellington Financial, Inc (NYSE: EFC) is a mortgage real estate investment trust (REIT) that focuses on generating attractive risk-adjusted returns through investments in residential and commercial mortgage-related assets. Established in 2013, the company is externally managed by Ellington Financial Management, L.P., a subsidiary of Ellington Management Group, an alternative asset management firm. EFC’s core strategy centers on actively acquiring and managing agency and non-agency residential mortgage-backed securities (MBS), mortgage servicing rights, residential whole loans, and other structured finance instruments, including asset-backed securities and commercial mortgage-backed securities (CMBS).

The company employs leverage and structured financing tools—such as repurchase agreements and secured credit facilities—to enhance portfolio yield while maintaining focus on risk mitigation.