Sigma Planning Corp Acquires Shares of 54,744 Ellington Financial Inc. (NYSE:EFC)

Sigma Planning Corp purchased a new position in Ellington Financial Inc. (NYSE:EFC - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund purchased 54,744 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $664,000. Sigma Planning Corp owned about 0.06% of Ellington Financial as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Barclays PLC lifted its stake in shares of Ellington Financial by 230.3% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 138,440 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,784,000 after buying an additional 96,525 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its position in Ellington Financial by 4.1% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 3,140,371 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $40,885,000 after purchasing an additional 124,943 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its position in Ellington Financial by 48.0% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 231,543 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,985,000 after purchasing an additional 75,143 shares during the period. Angel Oak Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in Ellington Financial during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,445,000. Finally, Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. lifted its position in Ellington Financial by 146.5% during the third quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 726,779 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $9,368,000 after purchasing an additional 431,945 shares during the period. 55.62% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on EFC. B. Riley upgraded shares of Ellington Financial to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. JMP Securities reiterated a "market outperform" rating and set a $14.00 price target on shares of Ellington Financial in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $13.75.

Ellington Financial Stock Performance

Shares of Ellington Financial stock traded up $1.05 on Friday, hitting $14.35. 3,844,907 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,009,585. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $12.60 and a 200-day simple moving average of $12.63. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.30 billion, a PE ratio of 10.95 and a beta of 1.97. Ellington Financial Inc. has a 1 year low of $10.88 and a 1 year high of $14.40. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 10.87, a quick ratio of 37.04 and a current ratio of 37.04.

Ellington Financial (NYSE:EFC - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 27th. The financial services provider reported $0.45 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.38 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $38.13 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $112.88 million. Ellington Financial had a net margin of 106.40% and a return on equity of 10.26%. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Ellington Financial Inc. will post 1.38 EPS for the current year.

Ellington Financial Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a monthly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 25th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 28th will be given a dividend of $0.13 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 28th. This represents a $1.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 10.87%. Ellington Financial's payout ratio is 119.08%.

Ellington Financial Company Profile

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.