Ellington Financial Inc. Plans Mar 25 Dividend of $0.13 (NYSE:EFC)

Ellington Financial Inc. (NYSE:EFC) declared a mar 25 dividend on Friday, March 7th, RTT News reports. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st will be paid a dividend of 0.13 per share by the financial services provider on Friday, April 25th. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st.

Ellington Financial has raised its dividend by an average of 2.6% annually over the last three years. Ellington Financial has a payout ratio of 91.2% meaning its dividend is currently covered by earnings, but may not be in the future if the company’s earnings fall. Equities analysts expect Ellington Financial to earn $1.67 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $1.56 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 93.4%.

Ellington Financial Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:EFC opened at $13.62 on Friday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $12.74 and a 200 day moving average of $12.65. The stock has a market cap of $1.23 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.39 and a beta of 1.99. Ellington Financial has a 12 month low of $10.88 and a 12 month high of $14.40. The company has a current ratio of 37.04, a quick ratio of 37.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 10.87.

Ellington Financial (NYSE:EFC) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 27th. The financial services provider reported $0.45 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.38 by $0.07. Ellington Financial had a net margin of 106.40% and a return on equity of 10.26%. The business had revenue of $38.13 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $112.88 million. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Ellington Financial will post 1.38 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have commented on the stock. JMP Securities reissued a “market outperform” rating and issued a $14.00 price target on shares of Ellington Financial in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. B. Riley upgraded shares of Ellington Financial to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on shares of Ellington Financial from $13.75 to $14.50 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, March 3rd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, three have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $14.00.

About Ellington Financial

Ellington Financial Inc, through its subsidiary, Ellington Financial Operating Partnership LLC, acquires and manages mortgage-related, consumer-related, corporate-related, and other financial assets in the United States. The company acquires and manages residential mortgage-backed securities (RMBS) backed by prime jumbo, Alt-A, manufactured housing, and subprime mortgage; RMBS for which the principal and interest payments are guaranteed by the U.S.