State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D Sells 5,953 Shares of Ellington Financial Inc. (NYSE:EFC)

State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D lessened its position in Ellington Financial Inc. (NYSE:EFC) by 3.8% during the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 150,385 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 5,953 shares during the period. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D’s holdings in Ellington Financial were worth $1,938,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. CWM LLC lifted its position in Ellington Financial by 150.2% during the second quarter. CWM LLC now owns 2,602 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 1,562 shares during the period. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC increased its stake in shares of Ellington Financial by 1,667.2% in the second quarter. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC now owns 282,746 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 266,746 shares in the last quarter. Members Trust Co purchased a new stake in shares of Ellington Financial in the third quarter worth $129,000. PFG Investments LLC purchased a new position in Ellington Financial during the second quarter valued at $141,000. Finally, Creative Planning purchased a new position in Ellington Financial during the third quarter valued at $141,000. Institutional investors own 55.62% of the company’s stock.

Ellington Financial Stock Up 0.2 %

Shares of Ellington Financial stock opened at $12.20 on Monday. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $12.65 and its 200-day moving average price is $12.52. The company has a quick ratio of 73.16, a current ratio of 37.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 10.87. Ellington Financial Inc. has a 52-week low of $10.88 and a 52-week high of $13.46. The company has a market cap of $1.11 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.31 and a beta of 1.99.

Ellington Financial (NYSE:EFC) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The financial services provider reported $0.40 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.36 by $0.04. Ellington Financial had a net margin of 106.40% and a return on equity of 10.26%. The company had revenue of $33.63 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $37.95 million. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.33 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Ellington Financial Inc. will post 1.37 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ellington Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a monthly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 26th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 29th will be issued a dividend of $0.13 per share. This represents a $1.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 12.79%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 29th. Ellington Financial’s payout ratio is 119.08%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ellington Financial

In related news, CIO Michael W. Vranos sold 14,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $12.48, for a total transaction of $174,720.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive now directly owns 168,359 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,101,120.32. This trade represents a 7.68 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 4.40% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, JMP Securities lowered their price objective on shares of Ellington Financial from $14.50 to $14.00 and set a “market outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 24th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $13.56.

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.