Annaly Capital Management, Inc. (NYSE:NLY) Receives Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

Shares of Annaly Capital Management, Inc. (NYSE:NLY) have been assigned an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the seven brokerages that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and five have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month target price among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $21.07.

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Jonestrading lifted their target price on shares of Annaly Capital Management from $18.00 to $21.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, February 8th. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and set a $21.00 target price on shares of Annaly Capital Management in a research report on Monday, February 12th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $21.50 price target on shares of Annaly Capital Management in a report on Wednesday, March 27th. Compass Point began coverage on Annaly Capital Management in a report on Tuesday, April 2nd. They issued a “buy” rating and a $22.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, JMP Securities reiterated a “market perform” rating on shares of Annaly Capital Management in a research report on Thursday, April 18th.

Insider Activity at Annaly Capital Management

In other Annaly Capital Management news, CEO David L. Finkelstein sold 50,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $19.03, for a total value of $951,500.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 662,469 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $12,606,785.07. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 0.21% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Annaly Capital Management

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Annaly Capital Management by 3.4% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 49,300,019 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $954,941,000 after purchasing an additional 1,619,729 shares during the period. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC boosted its holdings in Annaly Capital Management by 1.6% in the 1st quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 17,449,356 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $343,578,000 after purchasing an additional 278,391 shares during the last quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. grew its stake in shares of Annaly Capital Management by 159.7% in the 4th quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. now owns 6,118,940 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $118,524,000 after buying an additional 3,762,652 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Annaly Capital Management during the 4th quarter worth approximately $110,244,000. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Annaly Capital Management by 3.8% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,137,529 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $60,774,000 after buying an additional 116,102 shares during the period. 51.56% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Annaly Capital Management Stock Up 1.7 %

Annaly Capital Management stock opened at $18.64 on Wednesday. Annaly Capital Management has a 52 week low of $14.52 and a 52 week high of $21.07. The firm has a market cap of $9.33 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -5.16 and a beta of 1.54. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $19.10 and its 200 day moving average price is $18.62. The company has a quick ratio of 1.22, a current ratio of 1.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.40.

Annaly Capital Management Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 30th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 28th will be paid a $0.65 dividend. This represents a $2.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 13.95%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, March 27th. Annaly Capital Management’s dividend payout ratio is currently -72.02%.

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.