Two Harbors Investment (NYSE:TWO) Earns "Market Outperform" Rating from JMP Securities

JMP Securities reissued their market outperform rating on shares of Two Harbors Investment (NYSE:TWO - Free Report) in a report issued on Thursday morning,Benzinga reports. JMP Securities currently has a $14.00 price target on the real estate investment trust's stock.

Other analysts have also issued research reports about the company. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price objective on Two Harbors Investment from $14.00 to $12.00 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, November 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on shares of Two Harbors Investment from $11.50 to $11.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday. Compass Point lowered their target price on shares of Two Harbors Investment from $15.75 to $14.75 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Monday, November 25th. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of Two Harbors Investment to a "sell" rating in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Two Harbors Investment has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $13.54.

Two Harbors Investment Price Performance

TWO stock traded up $0.02 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $11.82. 810,536 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,283,313. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $11.71 and its 200-day moving average price is $12.71. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a current ratio of 1.07. The stock has a market cap of $1.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -2.45 and a beta of 1.83. Two Harbors Investment has a fifty-two week low of $10.84 and a fifty-two week high of $14.27.

Two Harbors Investment (NYSE:TWO - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, October 28th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.35 by ($0.22). The firm had revenue of $112.64 million for the quarter. Two Harbors Investment had a positive return on equity of 4.45% and a negative net margin of 87.84%. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned ($0.01) earnings per share. Research analysts predict that Two Harbors Investment will post 0.47 earnings per share for the current year.

Two Harbors Investment Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 29th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 3rd will be paid a dividend of $0.45 per share. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 15.23%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 3rd. Two Harbors Investment's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently -37.34%.

Insider Transactions at Two Harbors Investment

In other news, insider Rebecca B. Sandberg sold 5,025 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $11.21, for a total transaction of $56,330.25. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 156,163 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,750,587.23. This represents a 3.12 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CIO Nicholas Letica sold 3,956 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $11.21, for a total value of $44,346.76. Following the transaction, the executive now owns 180,712 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,025,781.52. This trade represents a 2.14 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 29,754 shares of company stock valued at $333,307 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.61% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Two Harbors Investment

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in TWO. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV acquired a new position in Two Harbors Investment during the 2nd quarter valued at about $192,000. Intech Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Two Harbors Investment during the 2nd quarter valued at $180,000. Sei Investments Co. lifted its stake in shares of Two Harbors Investment by 21.0% in the 2nd quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 117,451 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $1,552,000 after purchasing an additional 20,403 shares during the period. Public Sector Pension Investment Board lifted its stake in Two Harbors Investment by 7.6% in the second quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 227,705 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $3,008,000 after buying an additional 16,169 shares during the period. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC bought a new position in Two Harbors Investment during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $147,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 64.19% of the company's stock.

About Two Harbors Investment

Two Harbors Investment Corp. invests in, finances, and manages mortgage servicing rights (MSRs), agency residential mortgage-backed securities (RMBS), and other financial assets through RoundPoint in the United States. The company target assets include agency RMBS collateralized by fixed rate mortgage loans, adjustable rate mortgage loans, hybrid mortgage loans, or derivatives; and other assets, such as financial and mortgage-related assets, including non-agency securities and non-hedging transactions.