Mortgage finance REIT Annaly Capital Management (NYSE: NLY) reported Q3 CY2025 results topping the market’s revenue expectations, with sales up 637% year on year to $885.6 million. Its GAAP profit of $1.20 per share was 5.9% above analysts’ consensus estimates.

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“We were pleased to generate an 8.1% economic return during the third quarter and 11.5% economic return for the first nine months of the year as each of our investment strategies drove strong performance and contributed to earnings that again exceeded our dividend,” said Chief Executive Officer & Co-Chief Investment Officer David Finkelstein.

Company Overview

Operating as a real estate investment trust since 1996 with a focus on generating income from interest rate spreads, Annaly Capital Management (NYSE: NLY) is a diversified capital manager that invests in agency mortgage-backed securities, residential mortgage loans, and mortgage servicing rights.

Sales Growth

Two primary revenue streams drive bank earnings. While net interest income, which is earned by charging higher rates on loans than paid on deposits, forms the foundation, fee-based services across banking, credit, wealth management, and trading operations provide additional income. Annaly Capital Management struggled to consistently generate demand over the last five years as its revenue dropped at a 22% annual rate. This wasn’t a great result, but there are still things to like about Annaly Capital Management.

We at StockStory place the most emphasis on long-term growth, but within financials, a half-decade historical view may miss recent interest rate changes, market returns, and industry trends. Annaly Capital Management’s annualized revenue growth of 369% over the last two years is above its five-year trend, suggesting its demand recently accelerated. Note: Quarters not shown were determined to be outliers, impacted by outsized investment gains/losses that are not indicative of the recurring fundamentals of the business.

This quarter, Annaly Capital Management reported magnificent year-on-year revenue growth of 637%, and its $885.6 million of revenue beat Wall Street’s estimates by 7.2%.

Net interest income made up 54.7% of the company’s total revenue during the last five years, meaning Annaly Capital Management’s growth drivers strike a balance between lending and non-lending activities.

Net interest income commands greater market attention due to its reliability and consistency, whereas non-interest income is often seen as lower-quality revenue that lacks the same dependable characteristics.

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Key Takeaways from Annaly Capital Management’s Q3 Results

We were impressed by how significantly Annaly Capital Management blew past analysts’ revenue expectations this quarter despite a net interest income miss. EPS also beat. Zooming out, we think this was a mixed quarter. The stock remained flat at $21.31 immediately after reporting.

Big picture, is Annaly Capital Management a buy here and now? The latest quarter does matter, but not nearly as much as longer-term fundamentals and valuation, when deciding if the stock is a buy. We cover that in our actionable full research report which you can read here, it’s free for active Edge members.