Ellington Financial Inc. (EFC) to Issue Monthly Dividend of $0.13 on March 25th

Ellington Financial Inc. (NYSE:EFC) declared a monthly dividend on Monday, February 10th, Wall Street Journal reports. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 28th will be paid a dividend of 0.13 per share by the financial services provider on Tuesday, March 25th. This represents a $1.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 11.72%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 28th.

Ellington Financial has raised its dividend payment by an average of 2.6% annually over the last three years. Ellington Financial has a dividend payout ratio of 90.7% indicating that its dividend is currently covered by earnings, but may not be in the future if the company’s earnings fall. 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 Stock Performance

EFC stock opened at $13.32 on Wednesday. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $12.50 and its 200 day simple moving average is $12.61. Ellington Financial has a 12-month low of $10.88 and a 12-month high of $13.46. The firm has a market cap of $1.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.16 and a beta of 1.97. The company has a current ratio of 37.04, a quick ratio of 37.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 10.87.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

EFC has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. B. Riley upgraded shares of Ellington Financial to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. JMP Securities reissued a “market outperform” rating and issued a $14.00 target price on shares of Ellington Financial in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, three have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $13.58.

Ellington Financial Company Profile

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.