SEC FORM 4

SEC FORM 4 SEC Form 4

FORM 4

UNITED STATES SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20549

STATEMENT OF CHANGES IN BENEFICIAL OWNERSHIP

Filed pursuant to Section 16(a) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934
or Section 30(h) of the Investment Company Act of 1940

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Check this box if no longer subject to Section 16. Form 4 or Form 5 obligations may continue. See Instruction 1(b).

Check this box to indicate that a transaction was made pursuant to a contract, instruction or written plan for the purchase or sale of equity securities of the issuer that is intended to satisfy the affirmative defense conditions of Rule 10b5-1(c). See Instruction 10.

1. Name and Address of Reporting Person^*

Knutson Craig L

(Last)

(First)

(Middle)

C/O MFA FINANCIAL, INC.

ONE VANDERBILT AVENUE, 48TH FLOOR

(Street)

NEW YORK

10017

(City)

(State)

(Zip)

2. Issuer Name and Ticker or Trading Symbol
MFA FINANCIAL, INC. [ MFA ]

5. Relationship of Reporting Person(s) to Issuer
(Check all applicable)

X	Director	10% Owner
X	Officer (give title below)	Other (specify below)
	Chief Executive Officer

3. Date of Earliest Transaction (Month/Day/Year)
01/02/2026

4. If Amendment, Date of Original Filed (Month/Day/Year)

6. Individual or Joint/Group Filing (Check Applicable Line)

X	Form filed by One Reporting Person
	Form filed by More than One Reporting Person

Table I - Non-Derivative Securities Acquired, Disposed of, or Beneficially Owned
1. Title of Security (Instr. 3)	2. Transaction Date (Month/Day/Year)	2A. Deemed Execution Date, if any (Month/Day/Year)	3. Transaction Code (Instr. 8)		4. Securities Acquired (A) or Disposed Of (D) (Instr. 3, 4 and 5)			5. Amount of Securities Beneficially Owned Following Reported Transaction(s) (Instr. 3 and 4)	6. Ownership Form: Direct (D) or Indirect (I) (Instr. 4)	7. Nature of Indirect Beneficial Ownership (Instr. 4)
1. Title of Security (Instr. 3)	2. Transaction Date (Month/Day/Year)	2A. Deemed Execution Date, if any (Month/Day/Year)	Code	V	Amount	(A) or (D)	Price		6. Ownership Form: Direct (D) or Indirect (I) (Instr. 4)	7. Nature of Indirect Beneficial Ownership (Instr. 4)

Table II - Derivative Securities Acquired, Disposed of, or Beneficially Owned (e.g., puts, calls, warrants, options, convertible securities)
1. Title of Derivative Security (Instr. 3)	2. Conversion or Exercise Price of Derivative Security	3. Transaction Date (Month/Day/Year)	3A. Deemed Execution Date, if any (Month/Day/Year)	4. Transaction Code (Instr. 8)		5. Number of Derivative Securities Acquired (A) or Disposed of (D) (Instr. 3, 4 and 5)		6. Date Exercisable and Expiration Date (Month/Day/Year)		7. Title and Amount of Securities Underlying Derivative Security (Instr. 3 and 4)		8. Price of Derivative Security (Instr. 5)	9. Number of derivative Securities Beneficially Owned Following Reported Transaction(s) (Instr. 4)	10. Ownership Form: Direct (D) or Indirect (I) (Instr. 4)	11. Nature of Indirect Beneficial Ownership (Instr. 4)
1. Title of Derivative Security (Instr. 3)	2. Conversion or Exercise Price of Derivative Security	3. Transaction Date (Month/Day/Year)	3A. Deemed Execution Date, if any (Month/Day/Year)	Code	V	(A)	(D)	Date Exercisable	Expiration Date	Title	Amount or Number of Shares	8. Price of Derivative Security (Instr. 5)		10. Ownership Form: Direct (D) or Indirect (I) (Instr. 4)	11. Nature of Indirect Beneficial Ownership (Instr. 4)
Phantom Shares	⁽¹⁾	01/02/2026		A		176,916		⁽²⁾	⁽²⁾	Common Stock	176,916	$0	1,426,514	D
Phantom Shares	⁽¹⁾	01/02/2026		A		273,938⁽³⁾⁽⁴⁾		⁽³⁾⁽⁴⁾	⁽³⁾⁽⁴⁾	Common Stock	273,938⁽³⁾⁽⁴⁾	$0	1,700,452	D

Explanation of Responses:

1. Each phantom share represents the right to receive one share of MFA Financial, Inc. common stock.

2. These phantom shares are scheduled to vest, subject to forfeiture, on December 31, 2028 (subject to earlier vesting in certain circumstances), and thereafter will be settled in an equivalent number of shares of MFA common stock within 30 days following the vesting date.

3. These phantom shares are performance-based equity awards. The number of phantom shares reported represents the "target" number of phantom shares granted. The number of underlying shares of MFA common stock that the recipient becomes entitled to receive at the time of vesting will generally range from 0% to 200% of the target number of phantom shares granted, subject to the achievement of a pre-established performance metric.

4. The vesting of these phantom shares will generally occur on December 31, 2028 (or such later date that the Compensation Committee of MFA's Board of Directors shall certify the achievement of the pre-established performance metric), based on MFA's absolute total stockholder return (TSR) and MFA's TSR as compared to the TSR of a designated peer group of companies, in each case for the three years then ended. The number of phantom shares to vest will be adjusted to reflect the value of any dividends paid on MFA's common stock during the vesting period in respect of the number of phantom shares that ultimately vest. The phantom shares will be settled in an equivalent number of shares of MFA common stock in January 2030.

	/s/ Craig L. Knutson	01/05/2026
	** Signature of Reporting Person	Date
Reminder: Report on a separate line for each class of securities beneficially owned directly or indirectly.
* If the form is filed by more than one reporting person, see Instruction 4 (b)(v).
** Intentional misstatements or omissions of facts constitute Federal Criminal Violations See 18 U.S.C. 1001 and 15 U.S.C. 78ff(a).
Note: File three copies of this Form, one of which must be manually signed. If space is insufficient, see Instruction 6 for procedure.
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SEC Form 4 filed by Chief Executive Officer Knutson Craig L