Redwood Trust (NYSE:RWT) Sets New 1-Year Low – Should You Sell?

Redwood Trust, Inc. (NYSE:RWT) reached a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Monday . The stock traded as low as $4.67 and last traded at $4.80, with a volume of 3393367 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $4.81.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on RWT. Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d)” rating on shares of Redwood Trust in a research note on Wednesday. Piper Sandler boosted their price target on Redwood Trust from $6.00 to $6.50 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. BTIG Research cut their price objective on Redwood Trust from $8.50 to $6.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, June 17th. Zacks Research cut Redwood Trust from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, April 13th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised Redwood Trust from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, May 9th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $6.54.

Redwood Trust Trading Down 0.1%

The company has a current ratio of 59.63, a quick ratio of 59.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 28.42. The firm has a market cap of $601.66 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -6.16 and a beta of 1.37. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $5.35 and a 200-day moving average price of $5.62.

Redwood Trust Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 23rd will be paid a dividend of $0.18 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, June 23rd. This represents a $0.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 15.0%. Redwood Trust’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -92.31%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Redwood Trust

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in RWT. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC grew its position in Redwood Trust by 26.7% during the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 492,661 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $2,990,000 after buying an additional 103,893 shares during the period. Jane Street Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Redwood Trust in the first quarter worth about $2,018,000. Strs Ohio acquired a new position in shares of Redwood Trust in the first quarter worth about $149,000. XTX Topco Ltd boosted its stake in shares of Redwood Trust by 35.4% during the 2nd quarter. XTX Topco Ltd now owns 14,513 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $86,000 after acquiring an additional 3,795 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Russell Investments Group Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of Redwood Trust by 331.8% during the 2nd quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 7,915 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $47,000 after acquiring an additional 6,082 shares in the last quarter. 74.34% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Redwood Trust

Redwood Trust, Inc (NYSE:RWT) is a publicly traded real estate investment trust specializing in the U.S. residential mortgage market. Headquartered in Mill Valley, California, the company focuses on investing in a diversified portfolio of residential mortgage assets, including whole loans, agency and non-agency mortgage-backed securities, and structured credit products.

The company’s core activities encompass the acquisition, financing, and management of prime residential mortgage whole loans and mortgage-backed securities.