Simplify Asset Management Inc. Lowers Stock Holdings in Annaly Capital Management, Inc. (NYSE:NLY)

Simplify Asset Management Inc. cut its holdings in shares of Annaly Capital Management, Inc. (NYSE:NLY) by 34.9% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 80,274 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock after selling 43,028 shares during the quarter. Simplify Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Annaly Capital Management were worth $1,469,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. KBC Group NV lifted its holdings in shares of Annaly Capital Management by 238.9% during the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 5,198,020 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $95,124,000 after acquiring an additional 3,664,098 shares during the period. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Annaly Capital Management by 531.3% in the 3rd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 3,981,081 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $79,900,000 after purchasing an additional 3,350,435 shares during the last quarter. PL Capital Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Annaly Capital Management by 1,730.0% during the 4th quarter. PL Capital Advisors LLC now owns 2,792,635 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $51,105,000 after buying an additional 2,640,032 shares during the period. ORG Wealth Partners LLC increased its holdings in shares of Annaly Capital Management by 5,113.5% during the 4th quarter. ORG Wealth Partners LLC now owns 788,336 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $14,427,000 after buying an additional 773,215 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in Annaly Capital Management in the fourth quarter valued at $12,676,000. 51.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Annaly Capital Management Price Performance

Annaly Capital Management stock opened at $21.70 on Friday. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $20.75 and its 200 day moving average price is $20.02. The company has a market capitalization of $12.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.64, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.89 and a beta of 1.53. Annaly Capital Management, Inc. has a 12-month low of $17.67 and a 12-month high of $22.11.

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

Annaly Capital Management Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be given a dividend of $0.70 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 12.91%. This is an increase from Annaly Capital Management’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.65. Annaly Capital Management’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 176.10%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have commented on the company. Barclays started 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 for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of Annaly Capital Management from $19.00 to $21.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. JMP Securities reiterated a “market perform” rating on shares of Annaly Capital Management in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $22.00 price objective on shares of Annaly Capital Management in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Annaly Capital Management has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $21.44.

Annaly Capital Management 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.