Two Harbors Investment (NYSE:TWO) Upgraded by StockNews.com to Hold

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Two Harbors Investment (NYSE:TWO) from a sell rating to a hold rating in a research report sent to investors on Thursday.

Several other research firms have also commented on TWO. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on Two Harbors Investment from $12.50 to $13.00 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a report on Tuesday, July 16th. Janney Montgomery Scott started coverage on Two Harbors Investment in a research note on Friday, August 16th. They set a buy rating and a $15.00 target price for the company. UBS Group upgraded shares of Two Harbors Investment from a neutral rating to a buy rating and increased their price target for the company from $13.50 to $14.50 in a research note on Friday, June 7th. Finally, JMP Securities reissued a market outperform rating and set a $15.00 price objective on shares of Two Harbors Investment in a report on Wednesday, August 28th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of Hold and an average price target of $14.90.

Two Harbors Investment Stock Performance

Shares of TWO opened at $14.02 on Thursday. Two Harbors Investment has a 1 year low of $9.83 and a 1 year high of $14.59. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.45 billion, a PE ratio of 7.88 and a beta of 1.86. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.97, a quick ratio of 1.08 and a current ratio of 1.08. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $13.64 and a 200-day simple moving average of $13.08.

Two Harbors Investment (NYSE:TWO) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 30th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.02 by $0.15. Two Harbors Investment had a net margin of 27.71% and a return on equity of 3.64%. The company had revenue of $115.95 million during the quarter. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned ($0.04) EPS. On average, analysts predict that Two Harbors Investment will post 0.46 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Two Harbors Investment Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, July 29th. Shareholders of record on Friday, July 5th were paid a $0.45 dividend. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 12.84%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, July 5th. Two Harbors Investment’s dividend payout ratio is currently 101.12%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Two Harbors Investment

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Howard Financial Services LTD. boosted its stake in Two Harbors Investment by 2.3% during the 1st quarter. Howard Financial Services LTD. now owns 39,657 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $525,000 after purchasing an additional 903 shares during the period. Mutual of America Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Two Harbors Investment by 5.6% during the first quarter. Mutual of America Capital Management LLC now owns 17,779 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $235,000 after buying an additional 944 shares during the period. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System grew its holdings in shares of Two Harbors Investment by 2.0% during the second quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System now owns 52,100 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $688,000 after buying an additional 1,000 shares during the last quarter. Triumph Capital Management increased its position in Two Harbors Investment by 7.8% in the 1st quarter. Triumph Capital Management now owns 23,491 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $310,000 after acquiring an additional 1,696 shares during the period. Finally, Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp raised its stake in Two Harbors Investment by 12.0% during the 1st quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp now owns 16,743 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $221,000 after acquiring an additional 1,798 shares during the last quarter. 64.19% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Two Harbors Investment Company Profile

Two Harbors Investment Corp. invests in, finances, and manages mortgage servicing rights (MSRs), agency residential mortgage-backed securities (RMBS), and other financial assets through RoundPoint in the United States. The company target assets include agency RMBS collateralized by fixed rate mortgage loans, adjustable rate mortgage loans, hybrid mortgage loans, or derivatives; and other assets, such as financial and mortgage-related assets, including non-agency securities and non-hedging transactions.