Annaly Capital Management (NYSE:NLY) Reaches New 12-Month Low on Analyst Downgrade

Annaly Capital Management, Inc. (NYSE:NLY)’s share price hit a new 52-week low on Wednesday after Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their price target on the stock from $21.00 to $20.15. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods currently has an outperform rating on the stock. Annaly Capital Management traded as low as $17.08 and last traded at $17.19, with a volume of 2564086 shares. The stock had previously closed at $17.85.

Several other analysts have also recently issued reports on the company. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $22.00 target price on shares of Annaly Capital Management in a report on Monday, February 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of Annaly Capital Management from $19.00 to $21.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Barclays assumed coverage on shares of Annaly Capital Management in a research note on Monday, January 6th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $19.00 target price on the stock. Finally, JMP Securities reissued a “market perform” rating on shares of Annaly Capital Management in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Annaly Capital Management currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $21.29.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Annaly Capital Management

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in NLY. HighTower Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Annaly Capital Management by 15.0% during the third quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 69,879 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $1,400,000 after purchasing an additional 9,141 shares in the last quarter. Stifel Financial Corp lifted its stake in Annaly Capital Management by 17.8% during the 3rd quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 303,891 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $6,099,000 after acquiring an additional 45,843 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its stake in Annaly Capital Management by 9.9% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 537,125 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $10,780,000 after acquiring an additional 48,555 shares in the last quarter. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd boosted its holdings in Annaly Capital Management by 655.7% during the 3rd quarter. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd now owns 99,119 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $1,989,000 after acquiring an additional 86,002 shares during the period. Finally, Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its position in Annaly Capital Management by 0.5% in the 3rd quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 162,092 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $3,253,000 after acquiring an additional 829 shares in the last quarter. 51.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Annaly Capital Management Price Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $10.89 billion, a PE ratio of 11.84, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.89 and a beta of 1.31. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $20.86 and its 200-day simple moving average is $19.95.

Annaly Capital Management (NYSE:NLY) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.72 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.67 by $0.05. Annaly Capital Management had a net margin of 20.70% and a return on equity of 14.95%. On average, equities analysts predict that Annaly Capital Management, Inc. will post 2.81 earnings per share for the current year.

Annaly Capital Management Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 30th. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st will be issued a $0.70 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. This is a positive change from Annaly Capital Management’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.65. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 14.87%. Annaly Capital Management’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 176.10%.

Annaly Capital Management Company Profile

Annaly Capital Management, Inc, a diversified capital manager, engages in mortgage finance. The company invests in agency mortgage-backed securities collateralized by residential mortgages; non-agency residential whole loans and securitized products within the residential and commercial markets; mortgage servicing rights; agency commercial mortgage-backed securities; to-be-announced forward contracts; residential mortgage loans; and agency or private label credit risk transfer securities.