Annaly Capital Management Sees Unusually High Options Volume (NYSE:NLY)

Annaly Capital Management, Inc. (NYSE:NLY) was the target of unusually large options trading activity on Wednesday. Stock investors acquired 79,564 call options on the company. This represents an increase of 1,111% compared to the typical daily volume of 6,571 call options.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on NLY. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Annaly Capital Management from $19.00 to $21.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Argus upgraded shares of Annaly Capital Management from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $21.00 target price on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and set a $22.00 target price on shares of Annaly Capital Management in a report on Monday, February 10th. JMP Securities reiterated a “market perform” rating on shares of Annaly Capital Management in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, Barclays initiated coverage on shares of Annaly Capital Management in a report on Monday, January 6th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $19.00 price objective on the stock. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $21.44.

Annaly Capital Management Stock Performance

NLY stock opened at $21.85 on Thursday. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $19.77 and its 200 day simple moving average is $19.84. Annaly Capital Management has a 52 week low of $17.67 and a 52 week high of $22.05. The company has a market capitalization of $12.63 billion, a PE ratio of 13.74, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.89 and a beta of 1.52.

Annaly Capital Management (NYSE:NLY) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.72 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.67 by $0.05. Annaly Capital Management had a net margin of 20.70% and a return on equity of 14.95%. On average, analysts forecast that Annaly Capital Management will post 2.81 EPS for the current year.

Annaly Capital Management Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 31st. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 31st were paid a $0.65 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, December 31st. This represents a $2.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 11.90%. Annaly Capital Management’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 163.52%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Annaly Capital Management

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Avior Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in Annaly Capital Management by 209.9% during the third quarter. Avior Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,255 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 850 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its position in Annaly Capital Management by 78.5% during the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,630 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 717 shares during the period. Assetmark Inc. bought a new stake in Annaly Capital Management during the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. Larson Financial Group LLC lifted its position in Annaly Capital Management by 34.4% during the fourth quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 2,143 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 549 shares during the period. Finally, Fourth Dimension Wealth LLC bought a new stake in Annaly Capital Management during the fourth quarter worth about $39,000. 51.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Annaly Capital Management

Annaly Capital Management, Inc, a diversified capital manager, engages in mortgage finance. The company invests in agency mortgage-backed securities collateralized by residential mortgages; non-agency residential whole loans and securitized products within the residential and commercial markets; mortgage servicing rights; agency commercial mortgage-backed securities; to-be-announced forward contracts; residential mortgage loans; and agency or private label credit risk transfer securities.