Short Interest in Two Harbors Investment Corp. (NYSE:TWO) Drops By 22.0%

Two Harbors Investment Corp. (NYSE:TWO - Get Free Report) was the target of a large decline in short interest in the month of January. As of January 31st, there was short interest totalling 2,630,000 shares, a decline of 22.0% from the January 15th total of 3,370,000 shares. Approximately 2.6% of the shares of the company are short sold. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 1,250,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 2.1 days.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on TWO shares. JMP Securities reaffirmed a "market outperform" rating and issued a $14.00 price target on shares of Two Harbors Investment in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. StockNews.com upgraded Two Harbors Investment from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on Two Harbors Investment from $11.00 to $12.50 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Compass Point lowered their price objective on Two Harbors Investment from $15.75 to $14.75 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, November 25th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada increased their price objective on Two Harbors Investment from $12.00 to $13.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $13.96.

Two Harbors Investment Trading Down 0.2 %

NYSE:TWO traded down $0.03 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $13.50. 980,711 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,289,594. The company has a quick ratio of 1.07, a current ratio of 1.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.84. The business has a 50-day moving average of $12.06 and a two-hundred day moving average of $12.60. Two Harbors Investment has a twelve month low of $10.84 and a twelve month high of $14.27. The company has a market capitalization of $1.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.40 and a beta of 1.84.

Two Harbors Investment (NYSE:TWO - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.20 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.27 by ($0.07). Two Harbors Investment had a return on equity of 6.52% and a net margin of 66.24%. On average, equities analysts predict that Two Harbors Investment will post 0.81 EPS for the current year.

Two Harbors Investment Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 29th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 3rd were paid a dividend of $0.45 per share. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 13.34%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 3rd. Two Harbors Investment's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 85.31%.

Insider Activity

In other news, CIO Nicholas Letica sold 3,956 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $11.21, for a total value of $44,346.76. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive now owns 180,712 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,025,781.52. The trade was a 2.14 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Rebecca B. Sandberg sold 3,785 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $11.14, for a total value of $42,164.90. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 152,378 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,697,490.92. This trade represents a 2.42 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 33,136 shares of company stock valued at $377,154 in the last quarter. 0.61% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Simplify Asset Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Two Harbors Investment by 10.0% in the fourth quarter. Simplify Asset Management Inc. now owns 11,000 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $130,000 after acquiring an additional 1,000 shares in the last quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. raised its stake in Two Harbors Investment by 11.3% in the third quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 12,100 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $168,000 after buying an additional 1,230 shares in the last quarter. Sei Investments Co. raised its stake in Two Harbors Investment by 1.3% in the fourth quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 139,995 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $1,656,000 after buying an additional 1,770 shares in the last quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC raised its stake in Two Harbors Investment by 4.0% in the fourth quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC now owns 62,030 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $734,000 after buying an additional 2,384 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sterling Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Two Harbors Investment by 818.5% in the fourth quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 3,325 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $39,000 after buying an additional 2,963 shares in the last quarter. 64.19% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Two Harbors Investment Company Profile

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.