MFA Financial (NYSE:MFA) Stock Price Crosses Below 50-Day Moving Average – Time to Sell?

MFA Financial, Inc. (NYSE:MFA)’s stock price passed below its 50-day moving average during trading on Tuesday . The stock has a 50-day moving average of $10.60 and traded as low as $10.11. MFA Financial shares last traded at $10.20, with a volume of 487,743 shares trading hands.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have commented on the stock. Wedbush reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $15.00 price target on shares of MFA Financial in a report on Thursday, November 7th. StockNews.com lowered MFA Financial from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, November 7th. Finally, Janney Montgomery Scott assumed coverage on MFA Financial in a report on Thursday, January 2nd. They set a “buy” rating and a $14.00 price target for the company. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, MFA Financial has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $14.00.

MFA Financial Stock Up 0.9 %

The stock has a market capitalization of $1.04 billion, a PE ratio of 6.41 and a beta of 2.11. The business’s 50-day moving average is $10.60 and its two-hundred day moving average is $11.50.

MFA Financial Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 13.73%. MFA Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 88.05%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Waterfall Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of MFA Financial in the 2nd quarter valued at $1,150,000. Barclays PLC increased its stake in MFA Financial by 902.9% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 374,481 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $4,764,000 after purchasing an additional 337,142 shares during the period. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC raised its holdings in shares of MFA Financial by 74.9% in the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 157,481 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $2,003,000 after buying an additional 67,449 shares during the last quarter. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. boosted 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 worth $58,297,000 after buying an additional 1,197,220 shares during the period. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of MFA Financial by 0.9% during 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 buying an additional 21,331 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.28% of the company’s stock.

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.