Analysts Set MFA Financial, Inc. (NYSE:MFA) Target Price at $14.00

Shares of MFA Financial, Inc. (NYSE:MFA) have been given an average recommendation of “Buy” by the five brokerages that are presently covering the company, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a buy recommendation. The average 12-month price target among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $14.00.

MFA has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Wedbush reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $15.00 target price on shares of MFA Financial in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. Janney Montgomery Scott initiated coverage on MFA Financial in a research report on Thursday. They set a “buy” rating and a $14.00 target price on the stock. StockNews.com cut MFA Financial from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. Finally, Raymond James increased their price target on shares of MFA Financial from $13.00 to $14.50 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 19th.

MFA Financial Stock Up 1.2 %

Shares of MFA Financial stock opened at $10.34 on Thursday. MFA Financial has a 52-week low of $9.88 and a 52-week high of $13.45. The company has a market capitalization of $1.06 billion, a P/E ratio of 6.50 and a beta of 2.11. The company has a 50 day moving average of $11.06 and a 200 day moving average of $11.55.

MFA Financial Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 31st. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 31st will be given a $0.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 31st. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 13.54%. MFA Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 88.05%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of MFA. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its stake in shares of MFA Financial by 1.0% in the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 11,005,138 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $139,985,000 after purchasing an additional 111,331 shares during the period. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. lifted its stake in shares of MFA Financial by 35.4% during the third quarter. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. now owns 4,583,087 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $58,297,000 after buying an additional 1,197,220 shares during the period. State Street Corp grew its position in shares of MFA Financial by 6.2% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 2,579,818 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $33,700,000 after purchasing an additional 151,321 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of MFA Financial by 0.9% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,407,455 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $30,629,000 after acquiring an additional 21,331 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in MFA Financial by 0.7% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,835,409 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $23,346,000 after purchasing an additional 12,071 shares during the period. 65.28% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About MFA Financial

MFA Financial, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a real estate investment trust in the United States. It invests in residential mortgage securities, including non-agency mortgage-backed securities, agency MBS, and credit risk transfer securities; residential whole loans, including purchased performing loans, purchased credit deteriorated, and non-performing loans; and mortgage servicing rights related assets.