MFA Financial (NYSE:MFA) Receives New Coverage from Analysts at Wedbush

Wedbush assumed coverage on shares of MFA Financial (NYSE:MFA) in a research report released on Tuesday morning, FlyOnTheWall reports. The firm issued an outperform rating on the real estate investment trust’s stock.

Several other equities analysts also recently commented on the company. StockNews.com started coverage on MFA Financial in a research report on Thursday, August 17th. They set a hold rating for the company. JMP Securities boosted their target price on MFA Financial from $13.00 to $14.00 and gave the stock an outperform rating in a report on Friday, July 21st. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reissued a sector perform rating and issued a $11.00 price objective on shares of MFA Financial in a research note on Monday, August 28th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, MFA Financial presently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus target price of $12.50.

MFA Financial Price Performance

Shares of MFA stock opened at $10.89 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $1.11 billion, a P/E ratio of -30.25 and a beta of 1.95. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $10.98 and a 200 day moving average price of $10.61. MFA Financial has a one year low of $7.15 and a one year high of $12.38.

MFA Financial Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, July 31st. Investors of record on Friday, June 30th were issued a dividend of $0.35 per share. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 12.86%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, June 29th. MFA Financial’s dividend payout ratio is currently -388.88%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On MFA Financial

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. California State Teachers Retirement System boosted its holdings in shares of MFA Financial by 4.3% in the second quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 123,728 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $1,391,000 after buying an additional 5,078 shares during the period. Alliancebernstein L.P. lifted its stake in MFA Financial by 82.5% in the 2nd quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 252,474 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $2,838,000 after acquiring an additional 114,120 shares in the last quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN boosted its position in MFA Financial by 40.3% during the 2nd quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 131,062 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $1,473,000 after acquiring an additional 37,648 shares during the last quarter. Natixis Advisors L.P. grew its stake in shares of MFA Financial by 67.9% during the 2nd quarter. Natixis Advisors L.P. now owns 380,308 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $4,275,000 after acquiring an additional 153,839 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Caxton Associates LP acquired a new stake in shares of MFA Financial in the second quarter valued at approximately $2,214,000. 57.82% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

MFA Financial Company Profile

MFA Financial, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a real estate investment trust in the United States. The company invests in residential mortgage assets, 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.