JPMorgan Chase & Co. Boosts Annaly Capital Management (NYSE:NLY) Price Target to $24.00

Annaly Capital Management (NYSE:NLY) had its price objective raised by analysts at JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $23.00 to $24.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has an “overweight” rating on the real estate investment trust’s stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co.‘s price target would suggest a potential upside of 5.38% from the stock’s previous close.

Several other equities analysts also recently commented on the stock. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Annaly Capital Management in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. JonesTrading reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $25.00 price target on shares of Annaly Capital Management in a report on Wednesday. Barclays set a $24.00 price target on shares of Annaly Capital Management and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, January 30th. Wells Fargo & Company reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $25.00 price target (up from $23.00) on shares of Annaly Capital Management in a report on Thursday, January 29th. Finally, BTIG Research upgraded shares of Annaly Capital Management from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $25.00 price target on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 6th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have given a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $24.22.

Annaly Capital Management Stock Up 1.5%

Shares of NYSE:NLY opened at $22.78 on Thursday. Annaly Capital Management has a 52 week low of $18.43 and a 52 week high of $24.52. The stock has a market capitalization of $16.36 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.69, a PEG ratio of 6.95 and a beta of 1.23. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $22.21 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $22.32.

Annaly Capital Management (NYSE:NLY) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, April 21st. The real estate investment trust reported $0.76 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.74 by $0.02. Annaly Capital Management had a net margin of 34.33% and a return on equity of 15.92%. The business had revenue of $341.56 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $595.27 million. On average, analysts expect that Annaly Capital Management will post 2.93 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Annaly Capital Management

In other news, CFO Serena Wolfe sold 16,536 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $23.14, for a total value of $382,643.04. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 173,081 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,005,094.34. This represents a 8.72% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, COO Steven Francis Campbell sold 28,225 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $23.12, for a total transaction of $652,562.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 204,491 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,727,831.92. The trade was a 12.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 71,252 shares of company stock worth $1,639,995. Company insiders own 0.22% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in NLY. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Annaly Capital Management in the fourth quarter worth about $162,477,000. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC grew its holdings in shares of Annaly Capital Management by 394.1% in the third quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 5,374,696 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $108,623,000 after purchasing an additional 4,286,893 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Annaly Capital Management by 5.0% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 63,613,639 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $1,422,401,000 after purchasing an additional 3,024,564 shares during the last quarter. PFA Pension Forsikringsaktieselskab bought a new position in shares of Annaly Capital Management in the fourth quarter worth about $63,699,000. Finally, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Annaly Capital Management by 833.6% in the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 2,920,617 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $59,318,000 after purchasing an additional 2,607,784 shares during the last quarter. 51.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Annaly Capital Management

Annaly Capital Management, Inc is a publicly traded real estate investment trust (REIT) that specializes in generating income through investment in mortgage-related assets. The company’s core business activities include the acquisition, financing, and management of a diversified portfolio of agency and non-agency residential mortgage-backed securities (RMBS), commercial mortgage-backed securities (CMBS), and other real estate debt instruments. Annaly seeks to profit from the spread between the interest earned on its mortgage investments and its cost of funds, as well as from capital gains realized through active portfolio management.

Founded in 1997 and headquartered in New York City, Annaly has grown to become one of the largest mortgage REITs in the United States.