Orchid Island Capital Target of Unusually High Options Trading (NYSE:ORC)

Orchid Island Capital, Inc. (NYSE:ORC) was the recipient of some unusual options trading on Friday. Traders acquired 5,289 call options on the company. This represents an increase of 595% compared to the average volume of 761 call options.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Orchid Island Capital

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC raised its stake in Orchid Island Capital by 313.0% in the 3rd quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 207,548 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $1,480,000 after purchasing an additional 157,300 shares during the last quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP acquired a new position in shares of Orchid Island Capital in the second quarter valued at approximately $1,027,000. Financial Gravity Companies Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Orchid Island Capital during the second quarter valued at approximately $644,000. Swiss National Bank acquired a new stake in Orchid Island Capital during the second quarter worth approximately $1,417,000. Finally, Cetera Investment Advisers boosted its position in Orchid Island Capital by 58.4% during the second quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 326,071 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $2,286,000 after acquiring an additional 120,203 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 32.74% of the company’s stock.

Orchid Island Capital Stock Down 5.6%

Shares of ORC stock opened at $7.81 on Friday. Orchid Island Capital has a fifty-two week low of $5.68 and a fifty-two week high of $9.01. The stock has a market cap of $1.43 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.50 and a beta of 1.67. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $7.55 and a 200-day simple moving average of $7.31.

Orchid Island Capital (NYSE:ORC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 29th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.19 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.18 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $109.23 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $35.74 million. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Orchid Island Capital will post 0.37 earnings per share for the current year.

Orchid Island Capital Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a monthly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 26th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 30th will be paid a dividend of $0.12 per share. This represents a c) dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 18.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 30th. Orchid Island Capital’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 293.88%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have issued reports on the company. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (d+)” rating on shares of Orchid Island Capital in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Orchid Island Capital from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, November 1st. Finally, Compass Point began coverage on shares of Orchid Island Capital in a research note on Monday, December 15th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $7.50 price objective for the company. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and an average target price of $7.50.

More Orchid Island Capital News

Here are the key news stories impacting Orchid Island Capital this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q4 results beat consensus on EPS and showed much higher-than-expected revenue, which supports near-term fundamentals and cash flow expectations. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Unusual options activity: buyers purchased ~5,289 call contracts (a ~595% jump vs. average), signaling some investors are positioning for upside. (Reported market options flow)
• Positive Sentiment: Market narratives framing ORC as undervalued have surfaced, which can attract value-oriented buyers. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Company filed its formal Q4 disclosure and slide deck with results and details on operations and portfolio performance — useful for modelling but not an immediate catalyst on its own. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Earnings call transcript is available for investors wanting management commentary about interest-rate sensitivity, servicing economics, and capital allocation. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Analyst initiation/coverage from Compass Point assigned a Neutral rating and $7.50 price target and warned that dividend payouts could limit book-value growth and that political/policy risks are meaningful — this raises concerns about long-term NAV expansion and may cap upside. Read More.

Orchid Island Capital Company Profile

Orchid Island Capital is a real estate investment trust that specializes in investing in residential mortgage‐backed securities (RMBS), with a primary focus on mortgage pass‐through securities guaranteed by the Government National Mortgage Association (Ginnie Mae). Structured to elect and maintain status as a REIT under the U.S. Internal Revenue Code, the company’s principal business strategy involves acquiring pools of U.S. residential mortgages in the secondary market and holding them to generate interest income.