AGNC Investment (NASDAQ:AGNC) Trading 1.9% Higher – Here’s Why

AGNC Investment Corp. (NASDAQ:AGNC)’s stock price rose 1.9% during mid-day trading on Monday . The stock traded as high as $9.57 and last traded at $9.58. Approximately 8,759,600 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 47% from the average daily volume of 16,652,175 shares. The stock had previously closed at $9.40.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have recently commented on AGNC shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on AGNC Investment from $10.00 to $9.50 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, December 9th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their target price on shares of AGNC Investment from $10.75 to $10.25 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $11.00 price objective on shares of AGNC Investment in a report on Thursday, January 30th. StockNews.com raised shares of AGNC Investment from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. Finally, JMP Securities reiterated a “market perform” rating on shares of AGNC Investment in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $10.50.

AGNC Investment Stock Performance

The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $10.13 and a 200 day simple moving average of $9.90. The company has a current ratio of 0.23, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01. The stock has a market cap of $8.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.78 and a beta of 1.50.

AGNC Investment (NASDAQ:AGNC) last issued its earnings results on Monday, January 27th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.37 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.42 by ($0.05). AGNC Investment had a return on equity of 21.92% and a net margin of 29.26%. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that AGNC Investment Corp. will post 1.61 earnings per share for the current year.

AGNC Investment Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a mar 25 dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 9th. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st will be paid a $0.12 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. This represents a yield of 14.1%. AGNC Investment’s payout ratio is currently 148.45%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CFO Bernice Bell sold 13,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $10.04, for a total value of $130,520.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 372,226 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,737,149.04. The trade was a 3.37 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Frances Spark sold 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $10.10, for a total transaction of $50,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 75,919 shares in the company, valued at approximately $766,781.90. The trade was a 6.18 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.42% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On AGNC Investment

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Hsbc Holdings PLC raised its holdings in shares of AGNC Investment by 5.6% in the fourth quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 18,259 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $168,000 after buying an additional 970 shares during the last quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc lifted its position in shares of AGNC Investment by 5.3% during the fourth quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 21,428 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $197,000 after purchasing an additional 1,075 shares in the last quarter. Armstrong Advisory Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of AGNC Investment by 6.6% during the fourth quarter. Armstrong Advisory Group Inc. now owns 18,505 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $170,000 after purchasing an additional 1,150 shares during the last quarter. Garden State Investment Advisory Services LLC increased its holdings in shares of AGNC Investment by 10.0% in the third quarter. Garden State Investment Advisory Services LLC now owns 12,947 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $135,000 after purchasing an additional 1,176 shares in the last quarter. Finally, CoreCap Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of AGNC Investment by 34.8% in the fourth quarter. CoreCap Advisors LLC now owns 4,765 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $44,000 after purchasing an additional 1,229 shares in the last quarter. 38.28% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About AGNC Investment

AGNC Investment Corp., formerly American Capital Agency Corp., is a real estate investment trust. The Company invests in agency residential mortgage-backed securities on a leveraged basis. Its investments consist of residential mortgage pass-through securities and collateralized mortgage obligations (CMOs) for which the principal and interest payments are guaranteed by a government-sponsored enterprise, such as the Federal National Mortgage Association (Fannie Mae) and the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation (Freddie Mac), or by the United States Government agency, such as the Government National Mortgage Association (Ginnie Mae) (collectively, GSEs).