Brevan Howard Capital Management LP Acquires New Stake in Federal Agricultural Mortgage Co. (NYSE:AGM)

Brevan Howard Capital Management LP bought a new stake in shares of Federal Agricultural Mortgage Co. (NYSE:AGM - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm bought 1,685 shares of the credit services provider's stock, valued at approximately $332,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Barclays PLC boosted its stake in shares of Federal Agricultural Mortgage by 181.7% in the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 18,172 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $3,405,000 after buying an additional 11,721 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Federal Agricultural Mortgage by 10.3% during the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 319,701 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $59,911,000 after acquiring an additional 29,917 shares in the last quarter. Ellsworth Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Federal Agricultural Mortgage by 6.8% during the 4th quarter. Ellsworth Advisors LLC now owns 3,817 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $752,000 after acquiring an additional 243 shares in the last quarter. Kingswood Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Federal Agricultural Mortgage during the 4th quarter worth about $209,000. Finally, Copeland Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Federal Agricultural Mortgage by 2.5% during the 4th quarter. Copeland Capital Management LLC now owns 297,810 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $58,654,000 after acquiring an additional 7,283 shares in the last quarter. 68.03% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Federal Agricultural Mortgage Stock Up 0.7%

Shares of NYSE AGM traded up $1.38 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $195.26. 36,269 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 43,918. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.58, a current ratio of 0.49 and a quick ratio of 0.49. Federal Agricultural Mortgage Co. has a twelve month low of $159.64 and a twelve month high of $217.60. The company has a market cap of $2.13 billion, a PE ratio of 11.87, a P/E/G ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 0.97. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $181.61 and its 200-day simple moving average is $194.15.

Federal Agricultural Mortgage (NYSE:AGM - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Friday, May 9th. The credit services provider reported $4.19 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.00 by $0.19. The business had revenue of $96.79 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $94.33 million. Federal Agricultural Mortgage had a return on equity of 19.43% and a net margin of 12.75%. Research analysts predict that Federal Agricultural Mortgage Co. will post 17.6 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Federal Agricultural Mortgage Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th were issued a $1.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 14th. This represents a $6.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.07%. This is a positive change from Federal Agricultural Mortgage's previous quarterly dividend of $1.40. Federal Agricultural Mortgage's payout ratio is presently 37.08%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reissued a "market perform" rating and set a $215.00 target price (down previously from $230.00) on shares of Federal Agricultural Mortgage in a research report on Monday.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Mitchell A. Johnson sold 2,500 shares of Federal Agricultural Mortgage stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $205.21, for a total value of $513,025.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 8,644 shares in the company, valued at $1,773,835.24. The trade was a 22.43% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director Robert G. Sexton bought 1,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $195.62 per share, for a total transaction of $195,620.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 13,517 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,644,195.54. This represents a 7.99% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Corporate insiders own 2.20% of the company's stock.

Federal Agricultural Mortgage Profile

Federal Agricultural Mortgage Corporation provides a secondary market for various loans made to borrowers in the United States. It operates through four segments: Corporate AgFinance, Farm & Ranch, Rural Utilities, and Renewable Energy. The company's Agricultural Finance line of business engages in purchasing and retaining eligible loans and securities; guaranteeing the payment of principal and interest on securities that represent interests in or obligations secured by pools of eligible loans; servicing eligible loans; and issuing LTSPCs for eligible loans.