Van ECK Associates Corp Trims Stock Holdings in Ellington Financial Inc. (NYSE:EFC)

Van ECK Associates Corp cut its stake in shares of Ellington Financial Inc. (NYSE:EFC - Free Report) by 9.8% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 678,435 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 73,562 shares during the quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp owned approximately 0.80% of Ellington Financial worth $8,548,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of EFC. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. raised its stake in Ellington Financial by 146.5% in the third quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 726,779 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $9,368,000 after buying an additional 431,945 shares in the last quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC boosted its holdings in Ellington Financial by 2.0% in the third quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 47,814 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $616,000 after acquiring an additional 919 shares in the last quarter. Members Trust Co purchased a new stake in shares of Ellington Financial during the third quarter worth about $129,000. Creative Planning acquired a new position in shares of Ellington Financial during the third quarter valued at about $141,000. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC raised its position in shares of Ellington Financial by 104.8% in the 3rd quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 47,051 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $606,000 after purchasing an additional 24,079 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 55.62% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ellington Financial

In other news, CIO Michael W. Vranos sold 14,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $12.48, for a total transaction of $174,720.00. Following the sale, the executive now owns 168,359 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,101,120.32. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 4.40% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, JMP Securities decreased their target price on Ellington Financial from $14.50 to $14.00 and set a "market outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, July 24th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Ellington Financial has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $13.56.

Ellington Financial Trading Up 3.5 %

EFC stock traded up $0.42 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $12.46. 777,114 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 967,434. Ellington Financial Inc. has a 12-month low of $10.88 and a 12-month high of $13.46. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.87 and a beta of 1.99. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $12.76 and a 200-day simple moving average of $12.48. The company has a quick ratio of 73.16, a current ratio of 73.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 10.84.

Ellington Financial (NYSE:EFC - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The financial services provider reported $0.33 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.36 by ($0.03). Ellington Financial had a net margin of 103.55% and a return on equity of 9.76%. The firm had revenue of $33.60 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $37.20 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.38 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Ellington Financial Inc. will post 1.37 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ellington Financial Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a monthly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 25th. Investors of record on Thursday, October 31st will be issued a dividend of $0.13 per share. This represents a $1.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 12.52%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, October 31st. Ellington Financial's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 127.87%.

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.