Geode Capital Management LLC Buys 43,531 Shares of Ellington Financial Inc. (NYSE:EFC)

Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Ellington Financial Inc. (NYSE:EFC) by 2.2% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 2,008,827 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 43,531 shares during the quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Ellington Financial were worth $24,353,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. State Street Corp increased its position 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 purchasing an additional 124,943 shares during the period. Jane Street Group LLC boosted its stake in Ellington Financial by 38.3% during the third quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 142,085 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,831,000 after buying an additional 39,355 shares in the last quarter. Barclays PLC increased its holdings in Ellington Financial by 230.3% in the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 138,440 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,784,000 after buying an additional 96,525 shares during the period. McIlrath & Eck LLC acquired a new position in shares of Ellington Financial in the 3rd quarter valued at $62,000. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its holdings in shares of Ellington Financial by 48.0% during the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 231,543 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,985,000 after acquiring an additional 75,143 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 55.62% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

EFC has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on shares of Ellington Financial from $13.75 to $14.50 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, March 3rd. JMP Securities reissued a “market outperform” rating and issued a $14.00 target price on shares of Ellington Financial in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, B. Riley upgraded Ellington Financial to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $14.25.

Ellington Financial Price Performance

NYSE:EFC opened at $12.21 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 37.04, a current ratio of 37.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 10.87. The firm has a market cap of $1.11 billion, a PE ratio of 9.32 and a beta of 1.57. Ellington Financial Inc. has a 12 month low of $11.12 and a 12 month high of $14.40. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $12.94 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $12.58.

Ellington Financial (NYSE:EFC) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 27th. The financial services provider reported $0.45 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.38 by $0.07. Ellington Financial had a return on equity of 10.26% and a net margin of 106.40%. The business had revenue of $38.13 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $112.88 million. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Ellington Financial Inc. will post 1.38 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ellington Financial Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a monthly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 27th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, April 30th will be paid a $0.13 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 30th. This represents a $1.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 12.78%. Ellington Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 113.04%.

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.