Victory Capital Management Inc. Buys 14,898 Shares of MFA Financial, Inc. (NYSE:MFA)

Victory Capital Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of MFA Financial, Inc. (NYSE:MFA) by 17.9% in the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 98,187 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after acquiring an additional 14,898 shares during the period. Victory Capital Management Inc. owned about 0.10% of MFA Financial worth $1,045,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Capital Square LLC lifted its stake in MFA Financial by 2.8% in the second quarter. Capital Square LLC now owns 41,720 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $479,000 after purchasing an additional 1,139 shares during the last quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp raised its stake in shares of MFA Financial by 82.7% in the first quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp now owns 2,658 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 1,203 shares during the period. ProShare Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of MFA Financial by 8.5% in the first quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 18,392 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $210,000 after buying an additional 1,447 shares during the period. Quent Capital LLC lifted its position in shares of MFA Financial by 17.7% during the 1st quarter. Quent Capital LLC now owns 10,030 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $114,000 after buying an additional 1,508 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Creekmur Asset Management LLC bought a new position in shares of MFA Financial during the 4th quarter worth $25,000. 65.28% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

MFA Financial Trading Down 1.2 %

Shares of NYSE:MFA opened at $13.02 on Friday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $11.88 and a 200 day moving average of $11.22. The stock has a market cap of $1.33 billion, a P/E ratio of -162.67 and a beta of 2.16. MFA Financial, Inc. has a 12 month low of $8.41 and a 12 month high of $13.45.

MFA Financial Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 27th will be given a dividend of $0.35 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 27th. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 10.76%. MFA Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently -1,749.78%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MFA has been the topic of a number of research reports. StockNews.com upgraded MFA Financial from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 9th. Raymond James lifted their target price on shares of MFA Financial from $13.00 to $14.50 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday. Wedbush upped their price target on shares of MFA Financial from $13.00 to $14.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, August 9th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price objective on shares of MFA Financial from $12.00 to $13.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, August 9th. Finally, JMP Securities boosted their target price on shares of MFA Financial from $12.50 to $13.50 and gave the company a “market outperform” rating in a report on Friday, September 6th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $13.40.

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.