Redwood Trust (NYSE:RWT) Receives Market Outperform Rating from JMP Securities

JMP Securities reaffirmed their market outperform rating on shares of Redwood Trust (NYSE:RWT) in a research note released on Friday morning,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a $8.00 target price on the real estate investment trust’s stock.

A number of other equities analysts have also recently issued reports on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on Redwood Trust from $7.00 to $6.50 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. StockNews.com upgraded Redwood Trust from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, November 11th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, three have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $7.84.

Redwood Trust Price Performance

Redwood Trust stock opened at $6.37 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $843.49 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.57 and a beta of 1.57. Redwood Trust has a 52-week low of $5.45 and a 52-week high of $8.15. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $6.58 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $7.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 14.55, a quick ratio of 44.36 and a current ratio of 44.36.

Redwood Trust (NYSE:RWT) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.16 by ($0.03). Redwood Trust had a return on equity of 6.01% and a net margin of 9.35%. On average, equities analysts predict that Redwood Trust will post 0.55 earnings per share for the current year.

Redwood Trust Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 30th. Investors of record on Monday, December 23rd were issued a $0.18 dividend. This is a boost from Redwood Trust’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.17. This represents a $0.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 11.31%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 23rd. Redwood Trust’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 130.91%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Redwood Trust

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. LaSalle St. Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Redwood Trust in the 4th quarter valued at $37,000. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. purchased a new stake in Redwood Trust in the 3rd quarter valued at $39,000. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in Redwood Trust by 65.4% in the 3rd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 5,169 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $40,000 after buying an additional 2,043 shares during the last quarter. Sovran Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Redwood Trust in the 4th quarter valued at $63,000. Finally, KBC Group NV raised its position in Redwood Trust by 86.7% in the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 10,313 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $67,000 after buying an additional 4,788 shares during the last quarter. 74.34% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Redwood Trust Company Profile

Redwood Trust, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a specialty finance company in the United States. The company operates through three segments: Residential Consumer Mortgage Banking, Residential Investor Mortgage Banking, and Investment Portfolio. The Residential Consumer Mortgage Banking segment operates a mortgage loan conduit that acquires residential loans from third-party originators for subsequent sale, securitization, or transfer to its investment portfolio.