Annaly Capital Management, Inc. (NYSE:NLY) Shares Sold by D.A. Davidson & CO.

D.A. Davidson & CO. reduced its stake in Annaly Capital Management, Inc. (NYSE:NLY) by 0.2% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 316,800 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after selling 700 shares during the period. D.A. Davidson & CO.’s holdings in Annaly Capital Management were worth $5,797,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Armstrong Advisory Group Inc. increased its holdings in Annaly Capital Management by 6.6% in the 4th quarter. Armstrong Advisory Group Inc. now owns 9,121 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $167,000 after purchasing an additional 562 shares in the last quarter. Fermata Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Annaly Capital Management by 3.2% in the 4th quarter. Fermata Advisors LLC now owns 18,022 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $330,000 after purchasing an additional 563 shares in the last quarter. KG&L Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Annaly Capital Management by 2.0% in the 4th quarter. KG&L Capital Management LLC now owns 30,648 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $561,000 after purchasing an additional 600 shares in the last quarter. Hollencrest Capital Management grew its stake in shares of Annaly Capital Management by 6.3% during the third quarter. Hollencrest Capital Management now owns 12,058 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $242,000 after acquiring an additional 710 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. grew its stake in shares of Annaly Capital Management by 78.5% during the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,630 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 717 shares in the last quarter. 51.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Annaly Capital Management Stock Performance

NYSE:NLY opened at $21.55 on Thursday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $19.55 and a 200 day simple moving average of $19.77. Annaly Capital Management, Inc. has a one year low of $17.67 and a one year high of $21.59. The company has a market capitalization of $12.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.55, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.78 and a beta of 1.52.

Annaly Capital Management (NYSE:NLY) last issued its 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, equities research analysts forecast that Annaly Capital Management, Inc. will post 2.81 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Annaly Capital Management Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 31st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st were issued a $0.65 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, December 31st. This represents a $2.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 12.07%. Annaly Capital Management’s dividend payout ratio is currently 163.52%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

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

About Annaly Capital Management

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.