Short Interest in Orchid Island Capital, Inc. (NYSE:ORC) Drops By 16.3%

Orchid Island Capital, Inc. (NYSE:ORC) saw a significant decrease in short interest in the month of January. As of January 15th, there was short interest totalling 7,190,000 shares, a decrease of 16.3% from the December 31st total of 8,590,000 shares. Approximately 9.2% of the shares of the company are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 2,100,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 3.4 days.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, JMP Securities reissued a “market perform” rating on shares of Orchid Island Capital in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd.

Orchid Island Capital Stock Down 1.3 %

Shares of Orchid Island Capital stock traded down $0.11 on Monday, reaching $8.25. The stock had a trading volume of 5,053,387 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,022,804. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $7.91 and a 200 day moving average price of $7.99. Orchid Island Capital has a 1 year low of $7.41 and a 1 year high of $9.08. The stock has a market capitalization of $658.36 million, a P/E ratio of 13.74 and a beta of 1.83.

Orchid Island Capital (NYSE:ORC) last released its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.05 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.03) by $0.08. On average, analysts forecast that Orchid Island Capital will post 0.22 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Orchid Island Capital Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a monthly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 27th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 31st will be given a dividend of $0.12 per share. This represents a $1.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 17.47%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 31st. Orchid Island Capital’s dividend payout ratio is presently 240.00%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Orchid Island Capital

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. McIlrath & Eck LLC acquired a new stake in Orchid Island Capital during the third quarter worth about $58,000. Quadrature Capital Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Orchid Island Capital in the third quarter valued at approximately $90,000. Prairie Sky Financial Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Orchid Island Capital in the third quarter valued at approximately $105,000. Intech Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in Orchid Island Capital in the third quarter worth approximately $121,000. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Orchid Island Capital in the second quarter worth approximately $134,000. 32.74% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Orchid Island Capital

Orchid Island Capital, Inc, a specialty finance company, invests in residential mortgage-backed securities (RMBS) in the United States. The company’s RMBS is backed by single-family residential mortgage loans, referred as Agency RMBS. Its portfolio includes traditional pass-through Agency RMBS, such as mortgage pass through certificates and collateralized mortgage obligations; and structured Agency RMBS comprising interest only securities, inverse interest only securities, and principal only securities.