Prudential Financial Inc. Has $7.41 Million Stake in MFA Financial, Inc. (NYSE:MFA)

Prudential Financial Inc. decreased its stake in shares of MFA Financial, Inc. (NYSE:MFA - Free Report) by 14.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 726,800 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after selling 126,900 shares during the period. Prudential Financial Inc. owned 0.71% of MFA Financial worth $7,406,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Independent Advisor Alliance increased its position in MFA Financial by 0.7% during the 4th quarter. Independent Advisor Alliance now owns 174,183 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $1,775,000 after buying an additional 1,224 shares during the period. Zacks Investment Management raised its stake in MFA Financial by 12.7% in the 3rd quarter. Zacks Investment Management now owns 11,377 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $145,000 after purchasing an additional 1,281 shares in the last quarter. Rhumbline Advisers boosted its holdings in MFA Financial by 1.4% in the 4th quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 166,046 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $1,692,000 after purchasing an additional 2,287 shares during the period. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust acquired a new position in shares of MFA Financial during the 4th quarter worth approximately $46,000. Finally, Inspire Investing LLC increased its holdings in shares of MFA Financial by 22.3% during the fourth quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 39,594 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $403,000 after purchasing an additional 7,220 shares during the period. 65.28% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

MFA Financial Trading Down 2.7 %

NYSE MFA traded down $0.28 during trading on Thursday, hitting $10.02. 358,172 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,078,100. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $10.59 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $11.11. MFA Financial, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $9.36 and a fifty-two week high of $13.45. The company has a market cap of $1.03 billion, a PE ratio of 12.36 and a beta of 1.61.

MFA Financial (NYSE:MFA - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 19th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.38 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.40 by ($0.02). The company had revenue of $50.80 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $58.06 million. MFA Financial had a net margin of 16.47% and a return on equity of 9.61%. Analysts forecast that MFA Financial, Inc. will post 1.5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

MFA Financial Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be paid a $0.36 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. This represents a $1.44 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 14.38%. This is an increase from MFA Financial's previous quarterly dividend of $0.35. MFA Financial's dividend payout ratio is currently 177.78%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MFA has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Janney Montgomery Scott started coverage on MFA Financial in a research report on Thursday, January 2nd. They set a "buy" rating and a $14.00 price target on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price target on MFA Financial from $13.50 to $12.50 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 20th. StockNews.com cut shares of MFA Financial from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, March 28th. Finally, JMP Securities decreased their target price on shares of MFA Financial from $13.50 to $12.50 and set a "market outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. One equities research 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, MFA Financial currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $13.70.

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.