Ellington Financial (NYSE:EFC) Rating Increased to Strong-Buy at B. Riley

Ellington Financial (NYSE:EFC) was upgraded by analysts at B. Riley to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Tuesday,Zacks.com reports.

Ellington Financial Price Performance

EFC opened at $12.15 on Tuesday. Ellington Financial has a twelve month low of $10.88 and a twelve month high of $13.46. The firm has a market cap of $1.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.27 and a beta of 1.97. The company has a current ratio of 37.04, a quick ratio of 37.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 10.87. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $12.25 and a 200 day simple moving average of $12.59.

Ellington Financial (NYSE:EFC) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The financial services provider reported $0.40 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.36 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $33.63 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $37.95 million. Ellington Financial had a return on equity of 10.26% and a net margin of 106.40%. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.33 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Ellington Financial will post 1.37 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CIO Michael W. Vranos sold 14,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $12.48, for a total value of $174,720.00. Following the sale, the executive now directly owns 168,359 shares in the company, valued at $2,101,120.32. This trade represents a 7.68 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 4.40% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ellington Financial

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in EFC. Barclays PLC raised its holdings in Ellington Financial by 230.3% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 138,440 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,784,000 after buying an additional 96,525 shares during the period. State Street Corp raised its holdings in shares of Ellington Financial by 4.1% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 3,140,371 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $40,885,000 after acquiring an additional 124,943 shares during the period. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Ellington Financial by 146.5% during the third quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 726,779 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $9,368,000 after acquiring an additional 431,945 shares during the period. Intech Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Ellington Financial in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $695,000. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in Ellington Financial by 5.7% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 778,931 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $10,040,000 after purchasing an additional 41,669 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 55.62% of the company’s stock.

Ellington Financial Company Profile

Ellington Financial Inc, through its subsidiary, Ellington Financial Operating Partnership LLC, acquires and manages mortgage-related, consumer-related, corporate-related, and other financial assets in the United States. The company acquires and manages residential mortgage-backed securities (RMBS) backed by prime jumbo, Alt-A, manufactured housing, and subprime mortgage; RMBS for which the principal and interest payments are guaranteed by the U.S.