Analysts Set ARMOUR Residential REIT, Inc. (NYSE:ARR) Price Target at $18.17

Shares of ARMOUR Residential REIT, Inc. (NYSE:ARR) have earned a consensus recommendation of “Hold” from the six brokerages that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat Ratings reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, two have assigned a hold recommendation and three have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month price target among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $18.1667.

ARR has been the topic of several analyst reports. Weiss Ratings raised shares of ARMOUR Residential REIT from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research note on Friday, March 6th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of ARMOUR Residential REIT from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Saturday, February 21st. Zacks Research lowered shares of ARMOUR Residential REIT from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 19th. Compass Point started coverage on shares of ARMOUR Residential REIT in a research note on Monday, December 15th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $18.50 target price for the company. Finally, JonesTrading cut their price target on ARMOUR Residential REIT from $20.50 to $20.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 20th.

ARMOUR Residential REIT Stock Up 0.9%

Shares of NYSE:ARR opened at $17.18 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $2.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 6.29 and a beta of 1.44. ARMOUR Residential REIT has a 52-week low of $13.18 and a 52-week high of $19.31. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $17.99 and its 200-day simple moving average is $16.89.

ARMOUR Residential REIT (NYSE:ARR) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 18th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.71 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.74 by ($0.03). ARMOUR Residential REIT had a return on equity of 15.30% and a net margin of 40.31%.The company had revenue of $236.50 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $62.34 million. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that ARMOUR Residential REIT will post 3.8 earnings per share for the current year.

ARMOUR Residential REIT Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a monthly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 16th will be given a $0.24 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 16th. This represents a c) dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 16.8%. ARMOUR Residential REIT’s payout ratio is currently 105.49%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Robert C. Hain sold 6,833 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $18.06, for a total transaction of $123,403.98. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 1,010 shares in the company, valued at approximately $18,240.60. This represents a 87.12% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.23% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of ARMOUR Residential REIT

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Royal Bank of Canada lifted its holdings in shares of ARMOUR Residential REIT by 50.3% during the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 122,055 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $2,088,000 after acquiring an additional 40,860 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in ARMOUR Residential REIT by 26.1% in the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 14,393 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $246,000 after purchasing an additional 2,980 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its position in ARMOUR Residential REIT by 38.2% during the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 807,027 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $13,800,000 after purchasing an additional 222,923 shares during the last quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC increased its position in ARMOUR Residential REIT by 189.5% during the first quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 92,237 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $1,577,000 after purchasing an additional 60,371 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Strs Ohio purchased a new position in ARMOUR Residential REIT during the first quarter worth approximately $181,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 54.17% of the company’s stock.

About ARMOUR Residential REIT

ARMOUR Residential REIT (NYSE:ARR) is a mortgage real estate investment trust that was formed in 2008 to acquire and manage a portfolio of residential mortgage-backed securities (RMBS). The company’s investments are primarily agency-sponsored and agency-guaranteed RMBS issued by U.S. government-sponsored enterprises, along with credit risk transfer securities and select non-agency residential and multifamily RMBS. By focusing on high-quality mortgage assets, ARMOUR Residential REIT seeks to generate stable income and preserve capital through diversified exposure to the U.S.