MFA Financial (NYSE:MFA) Price Target Lowered to $12.50 at Keefe, Bruyette & Woods

MFA Financial (NYSE:MFA) had its price target reduced by Keefe, Bruyette & Woods from $13.50 to $12.50 in a report released on Thursday morning,Benzinga reports. They currently have an outperform rating on the real estate investment trust’s stock.

MFA has been the topic of several other research reports. StockNews.com cut shares of MFA Financial from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. JMP Securities lowered their price objective on shares of MFA Financial from $13.50 to $12.50 and set a “market outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Janney Montgomery Scott began coverage on shares of MFA Financial in a report on Thursday, January 2nd. They issued a “buy” rating and a $14.00 target price for the company. Finally, Wedbush reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $15.00 target price on shares of MFA Financial in a report on Thursday, November 7th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $13.70.

MFA Financial Price Performance

Shares of MFA opened at $10.31 on Thursday. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $10.33 and its 200-day moving average is $11.38. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.72 and a beta of 2.11. MFA Financial has a 12-month low of $9.36 and a 12-month high of $13.45.

MFA Financial (NYSE:MFA) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 19th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.40 by ($0.02). The business had revenue of $50.80 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $58.06 million. MFA Financial had a return on equity of 9.61% and a net margin of 16.47%. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that MFA Financial will post 1.5 EPS for the current fiscal year.

MFA Financial Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 31st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st were issued a $0.35 dividend. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 13.59%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, December 31st. MFA Financial’s payout ratio is 172.84%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in MFA. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. acquired a new stake in shares of MFA Financial during the third quarter worth approximately $25,000. National Bank of Canada FI acquired a new stake in shares of MFA Financial during the fourth quarter worth approximately $27,000. Sterling Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of MFA Financial by 823.4% during the fourth quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 3,278 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 2,923 shares during the period. Quarry LP acquired a new stake in shares of MFA Financial during the fourth quarter worth approximately $36,000. Finally, Parkside Financial Bank & Trust acquired a new stake in shares of MFA Financial during the fourth quarter worth approximately $46,000. 65.28% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.