Keefe, Bruyette & Woods Issues Pessimistic Forecast for MFA Financial (NYSE:MFA) Stock Price

MFA Financial (NYSE:MFA) had its target price lowered by investment analysts at Keefe, Bruyette & Woods from $13.50 to $12.50 in a research note issued to investors on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has an “outperform” rating on the real estate investment trust’s stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods’ price target suggests a potential upside of 21.30% from the company’s current price.

Several other brokerages have also recently weighed in on MFA. Janney Montgomery Scott assumed coverage on MFA Financial in a research report on Thursday, January 2nd. They issued a “buy” rating and a $14.00 price target for the company. JMP Securities reduced their target price on MFA Financial from $13.50 to $12.50 and set a “market outperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. StockNews.com downgraded shares of MFA Financial from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, November 7th. Finally, Wedbush reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $15.00 price objective on shares of MFA Financial in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $13.70.

MFA Financial Stock Down 0.5 %

Shares of MFA stock opened at $10.31 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $1.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.72 and a beta of 2.11. The company has a 50 day moving average of $10.34 and a 200-day moving average of $11.38. MFA Financial has a 12-month low of $9.36 and a 12-month high of $13.45.

MFA Financial (NYSE:MFA) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 19th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.38 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.40 by ($0.02). The firm had revenue of $50.80 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate 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 analysts expect that MFA Financial will post 1.5 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of MFA. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. purchased a new position in MFA Financial in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $25,000. National Bank of Canada FI bought a new stake in shares of MFA Financial during the 4th quarter worth $27,000. Sterling Capital Management LLC grew its position in MFA Financial by 823.4% in the fourth quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 3,278 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 2,923 shares in the last quarter. Quarry LP bought a new position in MFA Financial in the fourth quarter valued at $36,000. Finally, Parkside Financial Bank & Trust bought a new position in MFA Financial in the fourth quarter valued at $46,000. 65.28% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About MFA Financial

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.