158,794 Shares in Dynex Capital, Inc. (NYSE:DX) Purchased by Franklin Resources Inc.

Franklin Resources Inc. bought a new stake in Dynex Capital, Inc. (NYSE:DX) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund bought 158,794 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock, valued at approximately $2,009,000.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Westend Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Dynex Capital by 37.0% during the 4th quarter. Westend Capital Management LLC now owns 3,406 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $43,000 after purchasing an additional 919 shares during the last quarter. Founders Financial Alliance LLC boosted its stake in Dynex Capital by 4.7% during the fourth quarter. Founders Financial Alliance LLC now owns 21,195 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $268,000 after buying an additional 950 shares during the period. Cambridge Advisors Inc. increased its position in shares of Dynex Capital by 7.6% during the fourth quarter. Cambridge Advisors Inc. now owns 18,400 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $233,000 after acquiring an additional 1,300 shares during the last quarter. PDS Planning Inc lifted its holdings in shares of Dynex Capital by 10.8% in the 4th quarter. PDS Planning Inc now owns 15,822 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $200,000 after acquiring an additional 1,536 shares during the last quarter. Finally, PNC Financial Services Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Dynex Capital by 87.5% during the 4th quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 3,642 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $46,000 after purchasing an additional 1,700 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 38.34% of the company’s stock.

Dynex Capital Stock Up 2.3 %

Dynex Capital stock opened at $11.39 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.10 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.74 and a beta of 1.14. The company has a current ratio of 1.20, a quick ratio of 1.20 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01. Dynex Capital, Inc. has a twelve month low of $10.79 and a twelve month high of $14.52. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $13.40 and its 200-day simple moving average is $12.84.

Dynex Capital (NYSE:DX) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, January 27th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.10 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.38 by ($0.28). Dynex Capital had a net margin of 35.65% and a negative return on equity of 2.24%. As a group, equities analysts expect that Dynex Capital, Inc. will post 1.94 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Dynex Capital Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a monthly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Investors of record on Monday, March 24th were paid a $0.17 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 24th. This represents a $2.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 17.92%. This is an increase from Dynex Capital’s previous monthly dividend of $0.15. Dynex Capital’s payout ratio is currently 138.78%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have commented on DX. StockNews.com upgraded Dynex Capital from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their target price on Dynex Capital from $13.25 to $12.50 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. Finally, JMP Securities reaffirmed a “market perform” rating on shares of Dynex Capital in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $13.33.

Dynex Capital Profile

Dynex Capital, Inc, a mortgage real estate investment trust, invests in mortgage-backed securities (MBS) on a leveraged basis in the United States. It invests in agency and non-agency MBS consisting of residential MBS, commercial MBS (CMBS), and CMBS interest-only securities. Agency MBS have a guaranty of principal payment by an agency of the U.S.