Fifth Third Bancorp Acquires 2,949 Shares of Annaly Capital Management, Inc. (NYSE:NLY)

Fifth Third Bancorp grew its holdings in Annaly Capital Management, Inc. (NYSE:NLY) by 50.3% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 8,814 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,949 shares during the period. Fifth Third Bancorp’s holdings in Annaly Capital Management were worth $161,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. Key Client Fiduciary Advisors LLC grew its position in Annaly Capital Management by 17.5% in the fourth quarter. Key Client Fiduciary Advisors LLC now owns 182,809 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $3,345,000 after acquiring an additional 27,230 shares during the last quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC grew its holdings in shares of Annaly Capital Management by 13.7% during the 4th quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 153,738 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $2,813,000 after purchasing an additional 18,541 shares during the last quarter. Bartlett & CO. Wealth Management LLC increased its position in Annaly Capital Management by 68.1% during the 4th quarter. Bartlett & CO. Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,962 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $56,000 after purchasing an additional 1,200 shares in the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC lifted its stake in Annaly Capital Management by 38.4% in the 4th quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 367,234 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $6,720,000 after purchasing an additional 101,977 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Nisa Investment Advisors LLC boosted its position in Annaly Capital Management by 4.9% in the fourth quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 186,470 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $3,534,000 after buying an additional 8,739 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 51.56% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on NLY. Argus upgraded shares of Annaly Capital Management from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $21.00 price target for the company in a report on Thursday, October 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Annaly Capital Management from $19.00 to $21.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday. JMP Securities restated a “market perform” rating on shares of Annaly Capital Management in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price objective on shares of Annaly Capital Management from $21.00 to $22.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, January 27th. Finally, Barclays began coverage on shares of Annaly Capital Management in a report on Monday, January 6th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $19.00 target price on the stock. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $21.44.

Annaly Capital Management Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE NLY opened at $20.39 on Friday. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $19.29 and its 200-day moving average price is $19.70. Annaly Capital Management, Inc. has a 52-week low of $17.67 and a 52-week high of $21.11. The company has a market capitalization of $11.43 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.82 and a beta of 1.51.

Annaly Capital Management (NYSE:NLY) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.72 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.67 by $0.05. Annaly Capital Management had a net margin of 20.70% and a return on equity of 15.30%. Analysts forecast that Annaly Capital Management, Inc. will post 2.71 earnings per share for the current year.

Annaly Capital Management Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 31st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st were issued a $0.65 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, December 31st. This represents a $2.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 12.75%. Annaly Capital Management’s payout ratio is currently 163.52%.

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.