Redwood Trust, Inc. (NYSE:RWT) Stock Short Interest Rises 238.4%

Redwood Trust, Inc. (NYSE:RWT) was the target of a large growth in short interest in September. As of September 15th, there was short interest totaling 21,510,300 shares, a growth of 238.4% from the August 31st total of 6,356,217 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 10,267,153 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 2.1 days. Currently, 17.7% of the company’s stock are sold short.

Insider Transactions at Redwood Trust

In other news, Director Greg Kubicek purchased 50,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 15th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $3.85 per share, with a total value of $192,500.00. Following the purchase, the director owned 127,185 shares in the company, valued at $489,662.25. This represents a 64.78% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Christopher Abate purchased 100,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 15th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $3.84 per share, for a total transaction of $384,000.00. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer owned 679,283 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,608,446.72. This represents a 17.26% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. Insiders acquired a total of 244,171 shares of company stock valued at $948,402 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 3.30% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Redwood Trust

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Legal & General Group Plc purchased a new stake in shares of Redwood Trust during the second quarter valued at approximately $1,349,000. Bank of America Corp DE lifted its holdings in Redwood Trust by 66.4% during the first quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 395,286 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $2,218,000 after acquiring an additional 157,795 shares during the period. PVG Asset Management Corp purchased a new position in Redwood Trust in the second quarter worth $592,000. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC grew its stake in Redwood Trust by 7,932.1% in the 2nd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 265,059 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $1,256,000 after purchasing an additional 261,759 shares during the period. Finally, VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al bought a new position in Redwood Trust in the 2nd quarter valued at $990,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 74.34% of the company’s stock.

Redwood Trust Stock Up 1.2%

RWT traded up $0.04 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $3.73. 4,599,356 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 7,779,649. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 31.69, a quick ratio of 67.49 and a current ratio of 67.49. The stock has a market capitalization of $467.90 million, a PE ratio of -93.10 and a beta of 1.37. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $4.48 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $5.07. Redwood Trust has a 1 year low of $3.22 and a 1 year high of $6.97.

Redwood Trust (NYSE:RWT) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, July 28th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.25 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.23 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $56.01 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $89.45 million. Redwood Trust had a net margin of 0.42% and a return on equity of 16.02%. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Redwood Trust will post 1.03 EPS for the current year.

Redwood Trust Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 30th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, September 23rd will be paid a $0.18 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, September 23rd. This represents a $0.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 19.3%. Redwood Trust’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is -1,800.00%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently issued reports on RWT. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d)” rating on shares of Redwood Trust in a research report on Monday. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their price objective on shares of Redwood Trust from $5.50 to $4.75 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, September 14th. Citizens Jmp dropped their price objective on shares of Redwood Trust from $7.00 to $6.00 and set a “market outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 8th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Redwood Trust from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 15th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on shares of Redwood Trust from $7.00 to $6.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $5.84.

About Redwood Trust

Redwood Trust, Inc is a real estate investment trust that focuses on residential real estate credit. The company invests in, finances and manages residential mortgage assets, including jumbo and other non-agency mortgage loans, mortgage-backed securities and related credit investments. Its activities are primarily focused on the U.S. housing market.

Redwood operates through businesses that support the origination, financing and securitization of residential mortgage credit. Its platform has historically included Sequoia, which acquires and securitizes residential loans, as well as CoreVest, which provides financing to residential real estate investors and developers.