Better Buy: AGNC Investment or Annaly Capital Management?

Last year was a struggle for the entire mortgage real estate investment trust (REIT) sector. The Federal Reserve hiked rates aggressively in order to quell inflation, which killed the mortgage refinancing market and put several mortgage bankers out of business. Second, the rise in interest rates caused mortgage-backed securities (MBS) to lose money and pushed many mortgage REITs to cut their dividends.