Optimum Investment Advisors Acquires 1,000 Shares of Ellington Financial Inc. (NYSE:EFC)

Optimum Investment Advisors raised its holdings in shares of Ellington Financial Inc. (NYSE:EFC) by 7.8% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 13,900 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,000 shares during the quarter. Optimum Investment Advisors’ holdings in Ellington Financial were worth $164,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in EFC. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Ellington Financial by 9.3% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 547,084 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $6,822,000 after purchasing an additional 46,615 shares in the last quarter. Texas Permanent School Fund Corp grew its position in shares of Ellington Financial by 3.0% during the third quarter. Texas Permanent School Fund Corp now owns 57,372 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $715,000 after purchasing an additional 1,652 shares in the last quarter. Rhumbline Advisers grew its position in shares of Ellington Financial by 2.6% during the third quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 222,754 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,778,000 after purchasing an additional 5,560 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. grew its position in shares of Ellington Financial by 32.2% during the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,388,380 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $17,313,000 after purchasing an additional 338,434 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Penserra Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Ellington Financial by 14.5% during the third quarter. Penserra Capital Management LLC now owns 36,874 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $459,000 after purchasing an additional 4,664 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 55.62% of the company’s stock.

Ellington Financial Trading Down 0.1 %

EFC opened at $12.12 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $1.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.94 and a beta of 1.95. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $11.84 and its 200-day moving average price is $12.03. Ellington Financial Inc. has a one year low of $10.88 and a one year high of $14.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 10.99, a quick ratio of 46.79 and a current ratio of 46.79.

Ellington Financial (NYSE:EFC) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, May 7th. The financial services provider reported $0.28 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.35 by ($0.07). The business had revenue of $31.06 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $26.68 million. Ellington Financial had a net margin of 66.65% and a return on equity of 10.51%. On average, equities analysts forecast that Ellington Financial Inc. will post 1.48 EPS for the current year.

Ellington Financial Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a monthly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 25th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 28th will be paid a dividend of $0.13 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 28th. This represents a $1.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 12.87%. Ellington Financial’s dividend payout ratio is 243.75%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently commented on the company. Jonestrading assumed coverage on Ellington Financial in a research report on Friday, April 19th. They issued a “hold” rating for the company. JMP Securities reiterated a “market outperform” rating and issued a $14.50 price target on shares of Ellington Financial in a research report on Thursday, April 18th. StockNews.com upgraded Ellington Financial from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 2nd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price target on Ellington Financial from $14.00 to $13.25 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 28th. Finally, BTIG Research dropped their price target on Ellington Financial from $15.50 to $13.50 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 18th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $13.95.

Insider Activity

In related news, CIO Michael W. Vranos sold 8,300 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $12.15, for a total value of $100,845.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive now owns 160,874 shares in the company, valued at $1,954,619.10. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 4.40% of the company’s stock.

About Ellington Financial

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.