Annaly Capital Management Sees Unusually High Options Volume (NYSE:NLY)

Annaly Capital Management, Inc. (NYSE:NLY) was the target of some unusual options trading on Friday. Investors bought 47,277 call options on the company. This is an increase of approximately 428% compared to the average daily volume of 8,955 call options.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Annaly Capital Management

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of NLY. Blue Trust Inc. increased its position in Annaly Capital Management by 78.5% during the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,630 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 717 shares during the last quarter. Assetmark Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Annaly Capital Management during the 4th quarter worth $31,000. Larson Financial Group LLC raised its position in shares of Annaly Capital Management by 34.4% in the 4th quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 2,143 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $39,000 after buying an additional 549 shares during the period. Fourth Dimension Wealth LLC acquired a new position in Annaly Capital Management in the fourth quarter valued at $39,000. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its stake in Annaly Capital Management by 29.3% during the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 2,425 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $45,000 after acquiring an additional 549 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 51.56% of the company’s stock.

Annaly Capital Management Stock Performance

NLY traded down $0.44 during trading on Friday, hitting $20.66. The stock had a trading volume of 12,390,336 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,476,095. The firm has a market capitalization of $11.95 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.99, a PEG ratio of 4.89 and a beta of 1.53. Annaly Capital Management has a twelve month low of $17.67 and a twelve month high of $22.11. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $20.99 and its 200 day moving average price is $20.06.

Annaly Capital Management (NYSE:NLY) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.72 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.67 by $0.05. Annaly Capital Management had a return on equity of 14.95% and a net margin of 20.70%. As a group, equities analysts expect that Annaly Capital Management will post 2.81 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Annaly Capital Management Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be paid a dividend of $0.70 per share. This is a boost from Annaly Capital Management’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.65. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 13.56%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. Annaly Capital Management’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 176.10%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

NLY has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $22.00 price target on shares of Annaly Capital Management in a research note on Monday, February 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of Annaly Capital Management from $19.00 to $21.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. JMP Securities reissued a “market perform” rating on shares of Annaly Capital Management in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, Barclays started coverage on shares of Annaly Capital Management in a research report on Monday, January 6th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $19.00 price target on the stock. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $21.44.

About Annaly Capital Management

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.