ARMOUR Residential REIT, Inc. (NYSE:ARR) Sees Significant Increase in Short Interest

ARMOUR Residential REIT, Inc. (NYSE:ARR) was the target of a large increase in short interest during the month of March. As of March 15th, there was short interest totalling 6,620,000 shares, an increase of 29.8% from the February 28th total of 5,100,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 2,590,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 2.6 days. Approximately 6.6% of the company’s stock are sold short.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Robert C. Hain sold 2,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $18.07, for a total value of $45,175.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 6,793 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $122,749.51. The trade was a 26.90 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Company insiders own 0.35% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On ARMOUR Residential REIT

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of ARMOUR Residential REIT by 17.4% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 6,046,157 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $114,031,000 after acquiring an additional 895,433 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp boosted its position in ARMOUR Residential REIT by 1.5% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,807,864 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $36,880,000 after purchasing an additional 27,575 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of ARMOUR Residential REIT by 86.3% in the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,628,903 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $30,721,000 after acquiring an additional 754,582 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of ARMOUR Residential REIT by 13.6% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,304,665 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $24,611,000 after buying an additional 156,514 shares during the period. Finally, Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. acquired a new position in ARMOUR Residential REIT during the 4th quarter worth $19,865,000. 54.17% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

ARMOUR Residential REIT Trading Down 0.4 %

ARR traded down $0.07 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $17.04. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,850,672 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,628,807. ARMOUR Residential REIT has a 52-week low of $16.71 and a 52-week high of $21.93. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $18.63 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $19.04. The firm has a market cap of $1.36 billion, a P/E ratio of -39.62 and a beta of 1.53.

ARMOUR Residential REIT Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a monthly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 29th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 15th will be given a $0.24 dividend. This represents a $2.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 16.91%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 15th. ARMOUR Residential REIT’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -669.77%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently weighed in on ARR shares. JMP Securities reiterated a “market perform” rating on shares of ARMOUR Residential REIT in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. StockNews.com downgraded shares of ARMOUR Residential REIT from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Friday, February 14th. BTIG Research initiated coverage on ARMOUR Residential REIT in a research report on Monday, February 10th. They issued a “neutral” rating for the company. Finally, B. Riley upgraded ARMOUR Residential REIT to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and four have given a hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $20.50.

ARMOUR Residential REIT Company Profile

ARMOUR Residential REIT, Inc invests in residential mortgage-backed securities (MBS) in the United States. Its securities portfolio primarily consists of the United States Government-sponsored entity's (GSE) and the Government National Mortgage Administration's issued or guaranteed securities backed by fixed rate, hybrid adjustable rate, and adjustable-rate home loans; and unsecured notes and bonds issued by the GSE and the United States treasuries, as well as money market instruments.