Mortgage REITs aiming for sustained rally

• So roughed up are the mortgage REITS (REM +0.7%), that what's now a six-day rally in the sector is little more than a blip on the longer-term chart.
• There's no particular news today, but with much of the sector trading at somewhere in the area of a 15-20% or even higher discounts to book value, even the worst scenario on interest rates may be more than priced in.
• Leading the way higher today are Ellington Residential (EARN +4.3%), Javelin Mortgage (JMI +3.4%), Arlington Asset (though not a REIT) (AI +2.3%), Dynex Capital (DX +0.9%), Apollo Residential (AMTG +1.2%), PennyMac Mortgage (PMT +1%), Cherry Hill Mortgage (CHMI +1.2%), Hatteras Financial (HTS +0.5%), Two Harbors (TWO +0.8%). The action in Annaly Capital (NLY) and American Capital Agency (AGNC -0.3%) is more subdued.
• ETFs: MORL, REM, MORT, LMBS