ARMOUR Residential REIT (NYSE:ARR) Hits New 1-Year Low – Time to Sell?

ARMOUR Residential REIT, Inc. (NYSE:ARR)’s share price reached a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Friday . The stock traded as low as $17.00 and last traded at $17.12, with a volume of 1155723 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $17.58.

Analyst Ratings Changes

ARR has been the topic of a number of research reports. StockNews.com lowered shares of ARMOUR Residential REIT from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Friday, February 14th. BTIG Research assumed coverage on shares of ARMOUR Residential REIT in a research report on Monday, February 10th. They issued a “neutral” rating on the stock. B. Riley raised shares of ARMOUR Residential REIT to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Finally, JMP Securities restated a “market perform” rating on shares of ARMOUR Residential REIT in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and four have assigned a hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $20.50.

ARMOUR Residential REIT Trading Down 3.3 %

The business has a fifty day moving average price of $18.73 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $19.13. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.36 billion, a PE ratio of -39.59 and a beta of 1.53.

ARMOUR Residential REIT Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a monthly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 29th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, April 15th will be given a dividend of $0.24 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 15th. This represents a $2.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 16.94%. ARMOUR Residential REIT’s dividend payout ratio is currently -669.77%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other ARMOUR Residential REIT news, Director Stewart J. Paperin sold 24,852 shares of ARMOUR Residential REIT stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $18.78, for a total transaction of $466,720.56. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 363 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,817.14. The trade was a 98.56 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Robert C. Hain sold 2,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $18.07, for a total transaction of $45,175.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 6,793 shares in the company, valued at approximately $122,749.51. This trade represents a 26.90 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.35% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of ARR. Private Trust Co. NA acquired a new stake in ARMOUR Residential REIT in the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. Sterling Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of ARMOUR Residential REIT by 927.9% in the fourth quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 1,768 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 1,596 shares in the last quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of ARMOUR Residential REIT by 35.2% during the 4th quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 2,695 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $51,000 after buying an additional 702 shares during the period. McIlrath & Eck LLC acquired a new stake in ARMOUR Residential REIT in the third quarter valued at approximately $61,000. Finally, KBC Group NV lifted its position in shares of ARMOUR Residential REIT by 117.8% during the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 3,465 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $65,000 after purchasing an additional 1,874 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 54.17% of the company’s stock.

About ARMOUR Residential REIT

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.