MFA Financial, Inc. (NYSE:MFA) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Analysts

Shares of MFA Financial, Inc. (NYSE:MFA) have earned an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the six ratings firms that are covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and four have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 1-year price target among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $12.00.

Separately, JMP Securities reaffirmed a “market outperform” rating and issued a $12.50 target price on shares of MFA Financial in a report on Thursday.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On MFA Financial

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in MFA. Creekmur Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of MFA Financial in the 4th quarter worth about $25,000. Captrust Financial Advisors purchased a new stake in shares of MFA Financial in the 2nd quarter worth about $28,000. Federated Hermes Inc. boosted its position in shares of MFA Financial by 240.7% in the 3rd quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 4,027 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 2,845 shares in the last quarter. Future Financial Wealth Managment LLC purchased a new stake in shares of MFA Financial in the 1st quarter worth about $34,000. Finally, PNC Financial Services Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of MFA Financial by 520.2% in the 2nd quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 3,064 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 2,570 shares in the last quarter. 65.28% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

MFA Financial Stock Up 1.2 %

MFA Financial stock traded up $0.12 during trading on Thursday, reaching $10.37. The stock had a trading volume of 90,117 shares, compared to its average volume of 762,992. MFA Financial has a 52-week low of $8.41 and a 52-week high of $11.90. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $11.05 and a 200 day moving average price of $10.69. The stock has a market cap of $1.06 billion, a PE ratio of 25.93 and a beta of 2.10.

MFA Financial (NYSE:MFA) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 22nd. The real estate investment trust reported $0.46 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.34 by $0.12. The business had revenue of $169.88 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $43.75 million. MFA Financial had a net margin of 13.24% and a return on equity of 9.44%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.46 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that MFA Financial will post 1.47 EPS for the current fiscal year.

MFA Financial Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 30th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 28th will be paid a dividend of $0.35 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, March 27th. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 13.50%. MFA Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 350.00%.

MFA Financial Company Profile

MFA Financial, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a real estate investment trust in the United States. It invests in residential mortgage securities, including non-agency mortgage-backed securities, agency MBS, and credit risk transfer securities; residential whole loans, including purchased performing loans, purchased credit deteriorated, and non-performing loans; and mortgage servicing rights related assets.