MFA Financial Reports $81.5M Net Income

By Bobby Samwell • Thursday, February 22 10:53 • Permanent Link

MFA Financial, Inc. (NYSE: MFA) has released its financial results for the fourth quarter and full year ended December 31, 2023. The company reported a GAAP net income of $81.5 million for the fourth quarter, or $0.80 per basic and $0.76 per diluted common share. Craig Knutson, MFA's CEO and President, commented on the company's performance, stating, "In another historically volatile year, MFA stockholders earned a total return of 30.7% in 2023," and added, "MFA produced a total economic return of 2.7% while generating $1.59 per share of distributable earnings. These results are a testament to our focused approach to risk management and to the success of our strategic initiatives."

Knutson also emphasized the company's achievement of a total economic return of 7.8% in the fourth quarter, stating, "Although interest rates and credit spreads remained turbulent during the fourth quarter, we continued to add high-yielding assets to our balance sheet while keeping our funding costs relatively stable." He further noted, "We acquired or originated more than $850 million of residential mortgage loans during the quarter with an average coupon of 10%."

Additionally, MFA Financial reported a total stockholder return of 30.7% for 2023, with GAAP net income of $47.3 million, or $0.46 per basic and diluted common share, up from $(264.5 million), or $(2.57) per common share, in 2022. Distributable earnings were $1.59 per common share in 2023, down from $1.85 per common share in 2022.

The company also provided an overview of its portfolio activity, including loan acquisitions, funded originations of business purpose loans, non-QM loan acquisitions, and additions to its agency MBS position. MFA Financial maintained its position in interest rate swaps and reported healthy net interest spread and net interest margin figures.

MFA Financial, Inc. plans to host a live audio webcast of its investor conference call on Thursday, February 22, 2024, at 11:00 a.m. (Eastern Time) to discuss its fourth-quarter 2023 financial results. The webcast will be accessible to the general public over the internet.

The company's shares have moved 1.0% on the market today and are now trading at a price of $10.94.

The company's full 8-K submission is available here.

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