DnB Asset Management AS Sells 1,216 Shares of Annaly Capital Management, Inc. (NYSE:NLY)

DnB Asset Management AS reduced its holdings in shares of Annaly Capital Management, Inc. (NYSE:NLY) by 1.2% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 98,523 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after selling 1,216 shares during the period. DnB Asset Management AS’s holdings in Annaly Capital Management were worth $1,803,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Assetmark Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Annaly Capital Management during the fourth quarter valued at $31,000. Blue Trust Inc. grew its stake in Annaly Capital Management by 78.5% in the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,630 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 717 shares in the last quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC increased its position in shares of Annaly Capital Management by 34.4% during the fourth quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 2,143 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $39,000 after acquiring an additional 549 shares during the period. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in Annaly Capital Management by 29.3% during the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 2,425 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $45,000 after purchasing an additional 549 shares during the period. Finally, UMB Bank n.a. lifted its holdings in shares of Annaly Capital Management by 65.7% in the 4th quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 2,598 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $48,000 after buying an additional 1,030 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 51.56% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

NLY has been the topic of several research reports. Barclays assumed coverage on Annaly Capital Management in a research note on Monday, January 6th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $19.00 price target on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $22.00 price target on shares of Annaly Capital Management in a research report on Monday, February 10th. JMP Securities restated a “market perform” rating on shares of Annaly Capital Management in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Annaly Capital Management from $19.00 to $21.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $21.44.

Annaly Capital Management Stock Down 1.2 %

NLY opened at $20.08 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $11.61 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.63, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.89 and a beta of 1.53. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $21.02 and its 200-day moving average price is $20.05. Annaly Capital Management, Inc. has a 52-week low of $17.67 and a 52-week high of $22.11.

Annaly Capital Management (NYSE:NLY) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.72 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.67 by $0.05. Annaly Capital Management had a net margin of 20.70% and a return on equity of 14.95%. On average, research analysts anticipate that Annaly Capital Management, Inc. will post 2.81 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Annaly Capital Management Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be paid a dividend of $0.70 per share. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 13.95%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. This is an increase from Annaly Capital Management’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.65. Annaly Capital Management’s payout ratio is presently 176.10%.

Annaly Capital Management Company Profile

Annaly Capital Management, Inc, a diversified capital manager, engages in mortgage finance. The company invests in agency mortgage-backed securities collateralized by residential mortgages; non-agency residential whole loans and securitized products within the residential and commercial markets; mortgage servicing rights; agency commercial mortgage-backed securities; to-be-announced forward contracts; residential mortgage loans; and agency or private label credit risk transfer securities.