AGNC Investment (NASDAQ:AGNC) Trading Up 1.5% - Time to Buy?

Key Points

• AGNC Investment shares rose 1.5% to $11.08 in mid-day trading, near the analyst consensus target price of $11.11. Analysts maintain a consensus “Hold” rating, with four Buy ratings and seven Holds.
• The mortgage REIT reported quarterly EPS of $0.40, beating estimates of $0.38, and analysts expect full-year EPS of approximately $1.60.
• AGNC declared a monthly dividend of $0.12 per share, implying an annualized 13.0% yield and a 75.79% payout ratio. Institutional investors own 38.28% of the company, while an executive recently sold 5,000 shares.

AGNC Investment Corp. (NASDAQ:AGNC - Get Free Report)'s share price traded up 1.5% on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $11.13 and last traded at $11.08. 17,255,508 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 7% from the average daily volume of 18,653,619 shares. The stock had previously closed at $10.92.

Analyst Ratings Changes

AGNC has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Royal Bank Of Canada restated an "outperform" rating and issued a $12.00 price target on shares of AGNC Investment in a research report on Friday, April 24th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of AGNC Investment from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research report on Monday. Wall Street Zen raised shares of AGNC Investment from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, April 25th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their target price on AGNC Investment from $12.00 to $11.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Finally, Compass Point cut AGNC Investment from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $11.50 target price for the company. in a research report on Friday, July 17th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $11.11.

AGNC Investment Stock Up 1.5%

The firm has a market capitalization of $13.14 billion, a PE ratio of 5.83 and a beta of 1.32. The business's 50-day moving average price is $10.79 and its 200-day moving average price is $10.72.

AGNC Investment (NASDAQ:AGNC - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, July 20th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.40 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.38 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $305.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.06 billion. AGNC Investment had a net margin of 57.94% and a return on equity of 17.96%. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted ($0.17) earnings per share. On average, analysts anticipate that AGNC Investment Corp. will post 1.6 EPS for the current fiscal year.

AGNC Investment Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a monthly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 31st will be paid a $0.12 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 31st. This represents a c) dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 13.0%. AGNC Investment's dividend payout ratio is 75.79%.

Insider Transactions at AGNC Investment

In related news, EVP Bernice Bell sold 5,000 shares of AGNC Investment stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $11.00, for a total transaction of $55,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 406,947 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,476,417. This trade represents a 1.21% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.40% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On AGNC Investment

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of AGNC Investment in the second quarter worth about $704,076,000. Norges Bank acquired a new position in AGNC Investment during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $141,830,000. Equity Investment Corp acquired a new stake in shares of AGNC Investment in the second quarter worth $106,123,000. Bank of America Corp DE acquired a new position in AGNC Investment in the 2nd quarter valued at $77,501,000. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp bought a new position in AGNC Investment in the 2nd quarter worth $40,182,000. Institutional investors own 38.28% of the company's stock.

About AGNC Investment

AGNC Investment Corp. is a self-managed real estate investment trust (REIT) that primarily acquires and manages a portfolio of residential mortgage-backed securities guaranteed by U.S. government-sponsored enterprises such as Ginnie Mae, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. The company employs a leveraged total return strategy, borrowing against its securities to enhance income potential while using interest rate hedges to manage risk. AGNC's investment objective is to generate attractive monthly dividends and long-term capital appreciation for its shareholders.

Founded in 2008 and headquartered in Bethesda, Maryland, AGNC focuses exclusively on U.S.

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