Ellington Credit Company (NYSE:EARN) Sees Large Decrease in Short Interest

Ellington Credit Company (NYSE:EARN) was the recipient of a significant decrease in short interest in December. As of December 31st, there was short interest totaling 240,468 shares, a decrease of 51.5% from the December 15th total of 495,448 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 327,018 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 0.7 days. Approximately 0.6% of the shares of the company are sold short. Approximately 0.6% of the shares of the company are sold short. Based on an average trading volume of 327,018 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 0.7 days.

Ellington Credit Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE EARN traded down $0.05 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $5.43. 431,240 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 339,037. The firm has a market capitalization of $203.76 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 67.82 and a beta of 1.28. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $5.29 and its 200 day simple moving average is $5.50. Ellington Credit has a 52 week low of $4.32 and a 52 week high of $6.82.

Ellington Credit (NYSE:EARN) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 19th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.23 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.20 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $11.88 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $11.41 million. Ellington Credit had a return on equity of 16.47% and a net margin of 12.41%. Research analysts predict that Ellington Credit will post 1.17 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ellington Credit Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a monthly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 27th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 30th will be paid a $0.08 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 30th. This represents a c) annualized dividend and a yield of 17.7%. Ellington Credit’s payout ratio is 1,200.00%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently weighed in on EARN. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Ellington Credit from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 11th. UBS Group set a $6.00 price target on Ellington Credit in a research report on Tuesday, December 23rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Ellington Credit presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $6.25.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ellington Credit

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Bogart Wealth LLC boosted its stake in shares of Ellington Credit by 62.5% in the second quarter. Bogart Wealth LLC now owns 5,200 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 2,000 shares during the period. Engineers Gate Manager LP acquired a new position in Ellington Credit in the 2nd quarter valued at $83,000. Inspire Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Ellington Credit by 13.7% during the 2nd quarter. Inspire Advisors LLC now owns 19,566 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $113,000 after acquiring an additional 2,363 shares during the period. Vident Advisory LLC lifted its position in shares of Ellington Credit by 109.1% during the 2nd quarter. Vident Advisory LLC now owns 36,350 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $209,000 after acquiring an additional 18,967 shares during the period. Finally, Envestnet Asset Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Ellington Credit by 14.1% during the 2nd quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 71,562 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $411,000 after purchasing an additional 8,859 shares in the last quarter. 20.40% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Ellington Credit Company Profile

Ellington Credit Income Fund (NYSE: EARN) is a closed-end management investment company that seeks to generate current income through a diversified portfolio of mortgage- and asset-backed securities. The fund primarily invests in residential mortgage-backed securities (RMBS) and asset-backed securities (ABS), with additional exposure to commercial mortgage-backed securities (CMBS) and related structured credit instruments. To enhance income and manage risk, the fund employs leverage and derivative strategies such as interest rate swaps and credit default swaps, allowing it to adjust duration and credit exposure dynamically.

The fund is externally managed and advised by Ellington Management Group, LLC, an established investment firm specializing in mortgage credit and structured products.