The Zacks Analyst Blog Highlights: Annaly Capital Management, Apartment Investment and Management, New York Mortgage Trust, AGNC Investment and NexPoint Residential Trust

For Immediate Release

Chicago, IL – March 9, 2020 – Zacks.com announces the list of stocks featured in the Analyst Blog. Every day the Zacks Equity Research analysts discuss the latest news and events impacting stocks and the financial markets. Stocks recently featured in the blog include: Annaly Capital Management, Inc. NLY, Apartment Investment and Management Co. AIV, New York Mortgage Trust, Inc. NYMT, AGNC Investment Corp. AGNC and NexPoint Residential Trust, Inc. NXRT.

Here are highlights from Friday’s Analyst Blog:

U.S. Treasuries Slip to All-Time Lows: 5 Big Gainers

As the coronavirus outbreak continues to wipe out money from the U.S. stock market, investors have started to focus on safe havens. In fact, the corona scare has now fueled demand for U.S. debt, which in turn pulled Treasury yields to new record lows.

But record-low Treasury yields are a blessing in disguise for REITs. After all, REITs are known for providing attractive yields. Thus, investing in some solid REITs won’t be a bad proposition.

How Did Treasury Yields Fare?                                                                   

The yield on the 10-year Treasury note dropped 7 basis points to 0.924% on Mar 5, after touching an intra-day all-time low of 0.902%. In the process, the 10-year Treasury note yield registered its 11th straight trading session of a decline. And it’s still widely expected that the 10-year Treasury yield will breach the 0.9% threshold.

By the way, the 30-year bond yield was down 6.6 basis points to 1.570%, carving out a new record low. What’s more, the two-year bond yield slipped 5.4 basis points to 0.585%, its lowest since July 2016.

What’s Impacting Treasury Yields?

Concerns about the worldwide outbreak of the coronavirus and its subsequent impact on corporate profit margins and the global economy resulted in Treasury yields hitting all-time lows. Needless to say, the coronavirus outbreak may hamper consumer spending activities and supply chains. This compelled investors to take money out of riskier assets, including equities, and take shelter in the most safe-haven asset in the world – U.S. Treasuries. And as investors have started to pour money into U.S. Treasuries, its prices have started to go up and yields have begun to decline. Bond prices generally tend to move in the opposite direction of yields.

The coronavirus, in the meantime, has infected more than 95,000 people worldwide, with at least 3,286 deaths reported so far, per the latest data from the Johns Hopkins Whiting School of Engineering’s Centers for Systems Science and Engineering. In fact, policymakers are now struggling to contain the spread of the deadly virus, and eventually its impact on the economy. In order to restrict the negative impact of the spread of coronavirus on growth and development, the House recently passed an $8-billion fund and the IMF also declared a $50-billion lending program to help out business houses.

The Fed too trimmed interest rates by half a percentage point to 1-1.25% range, in an attempt to combat the impact of the coronavirus. And market participants continue to expect the Fed to trim rates further during its Mar 18 meeting.

Which Stocks Will Record-Low Treasury Yield Drive?

With bond yields stuck at record-low levels, income-seeking investors are widely expected to turn focus to a different corner of the market — stocks of REITs. This is because the high-yielding REITs are more alluring now with the slump in Treasury yields. Thus, investing in the best REIT stocks for now seems judicious. Moreover, REITs usually have attractive yields as they are required to distribute a majority of their taxable income every year as dividends to shareholders due to the special tax treatment they receive.

And REIT stocks’ healthy yields indicate their large customer base, sustainable business model, long track of profitability and strong liquidity, which make them less susceptible to market gyrations.

5 Top Choices

Given the aforesaid positives, we have highlighted five of the best REIT stocks that should make meaningful additions to your portfolio. These stocks also flaunt a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) or 2 (Buy).

Annaly Capital Management, Inc. has a Zacks Rank #2. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for its current-year earnings has risen 2.9% over the past 60 days. The company’s expected earnings growth rate for the next quarter and current year is 4% and 6%, respectively.

Apartment Investment and Management Co. has a Zacks Rank #2. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for its current-year earnings has moved 1.5% up over the past 60 days. The company’s expected earnings growth rate for the current quarter and year is 6.6% and 7.2%, respectively.

New York Mortgage Trust, Inc. has a Zacks Rank #2. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for its current-year earnings has moved 1.3% north over the past 60 days. The company’s expected earnings growth rate for the next quarter and current year is 125% and 18.8%, respectively. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

AGNC Investment Corp. possesses a Zacks Rank #1. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for its current-year earnings has advanced 8.7% over the past 60 days. The company’s expected earnings growth rate for the current quarter and year is 7.8% and 4.6%, respectively.

NexPoint Residential Trust, Inc.has a Zacks Rank #2. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for its next-year earnings has climbed 0.4% over the past 60 days. The company’s expected earnings growth rate for the current quarter and year is 18.9% and 17.7%, respectively.

And when it comes to dividends, Annaly Capital Management, Apartment Investment and Management, New York Mortgage Trust, AGNC Investment and NexPoint Residential Trust have a dividend yield of 12.51%, 3.2%, 13.09%, 10.53% and 2.54%, respectively.

Biggest Tech Breakthrough in a Generation

Be among the early investors in the new type of device that experts say could impact society as much as the discovery of electricity. Current technology will soon be outdated and replaced by these new devices. In the process, it’s expected to create 22 million jobs and generate $12.3 trillion in activity.

A select few stocks could skyrocket the most as rollout accelerates for this new tech. Early investors could see gains similar to buying Microsoft in the 1990s. Zacks’ just-released special report reveals 8 stocks to watch. The report is only available for a limited time.

See 8 breakthrough stocks now>>

Media Contact

Zacks Investment Research

800-767-3771 ext. 9339

support@zacks.com                    

https://www.zacks.com

Past performance is no guarantee of future results. Inherent in any investment is the potential for loss. This material is being provided for informational purposes only and nothing herein constitutes investment, legal, accounting or tax advice, or a recommendation to buy, sell or hold a security. No recommendation or advice is being given as to whether any investment is suitable for a particular investor. It should not be assumed that any investments in securities, companies, sectors or markets identified and described were or will be profitable. All information is current as of the date of herein and is subject to change without notice. Any views or opinions expressed may not reflect those of the firm as a whole. Zacks Investment Research does not engage in investment banking, market making or asset management activities of any securities. These returns are from hypothetical portfolios consisting of stocks with Zacks Rank = 1 that were rebalanced monthly with zero transaction costs. These are not the returns of actual portfolios of stocks. The S&P 500 is an unmanaged index. Visit https://www.zacks.com/performance for information about the performance numbers displayed in this press release.

Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report
 
Apartment Investment and Management Company (AIV) : Free Stock Analysis Report
 
AGNC Investment Corp. (AGNC) : Free Stock Analysis Report
 
New York Mortgage Trust, Inc. (NYMT) : Free Stock Analysis Report
 
Annaly Capital Management Inc (NLY) : Free Stock Analysis Report
 
NexPoint Residential Trust, Inc. (NXRT) : Free Stock Analysis Report
 
To read this article on Zacks.com click here.
 
Zacks Investment Research