WealthTrust Axiom LLC Reduces Stake in Annaly Capital Management, Inc. (NYSE:NLY)

WealthTrust Axiom LLC lessened its position in shares of Annaly Capital Management, Inc. (NYSE:NLY) by 2.7% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 43,793 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after selling 1,200 shares during the quarter. WealthTrust Axiom LLC’s holdings in Annaly Capital Management were worth $801,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Assetmark Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Annaly Capital Management during the 4th quarter valued at about $31,000. Blue Trust Inc. increased its holdings in Annaly Capital Management by 78.5% during the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,630 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 717 shares during the last quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC increased its holdings in Annaly Capital Management by 34.4% during the fourth quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 2,143 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $39,000 after buying an additional 549 shares during the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Annaly Capital Management by 29.3% during the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 2,425 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $45,000 after acquiring an additional 549 shares during the last quarter. Finally, UMB Bank n.a. boosted its stake in shares of Annaly Capital Management by 65.7% during the 4th quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 2,598 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $48,000 after acquiring an additional 1,030 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 51.56% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently weighed in on NLY. JMP Securities reiterated a “market perform” rating on shares of Annaly Capital Management in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on Annaly Capital Management from $19.00 to $21.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $22.00 target price on shares of Annaly Capital Management in a report on Monday, February 10th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price target on shares of Annaly Capital Management from $21.00 to $20.15 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. Finally, Barclays started coverage on shares of Annaly Capital Management in a research report on Monday, January 6th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $19.00 price objective on the stock. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $21.29.

Annaly Capital Management Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE NLY opened at $17.49 on Friday. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $20.74 and its two-hundred day moving average is $19.91. Annaly Capital Management, Inc. has a 52-week low of $16.60 and a 52-week high of $22.11. The company has a market cap of $10.45 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.00, a P/E/G ratio of 4.89 and a beta of 1.31.

Annaly Capital Management (NYSE:NLY) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.72 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.67 by $0.05. Annaly Capital Management had a return on equity of 14.95% and a net margin of 20.70%. As a group, analysts forecast that Annaly Capital Management, Inc. will post 2.81 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Annaly Capital Management Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 30th. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st will be issued a $0.70 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. This is a positive change from Annaly Capital Management’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.65. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 16.01%. Annaly Capital Management’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 176.10%.

Annaly Capital Management Profile

Annaly Capital Management, Inc, a diversified capital manager, engages in mortgage finance. The company invests in agency mortgage-backed securities collateralized by residential mortgages; non-agency residential whole loans and securitized products within the residential and commercial markets; mortgage servicing rights; agency commercial mortgage-backed securities; to-be-announced forward contracts; residential mortgage loans; and agency or private label credit risk transfer securities.