AGNC Investment (NASDAQ:AGNC) Stock Gets Downgrade from Wall Street Zen

Key Points

• Wall Street Zen downgraded AGNC Investment from “hold” to “sell.” Other analysts have also become more cautious, leaving the stock with a consensus “hold” rating and an average price target of $10.89.
• AGNC shares opened at $8.72, down 1.1%, with a market capitalization of approximately $10.34 billion. The stock has traded between $8.41 and $12.19 over the past year.
• AGNC reported quarterly earnings of $0.40 per share, exceeding analyst estimates of $0.38, while revenue came in at $305 million. An executive vice president also sold 5,000 shares at an average price of $11.00.

AGNC Investment (NASDAQ:AGNC - Get Free Report) was downgraded by analysts at Wall Street Zen from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report released on Saturday, Wall Street Zen reports.

A number of other research analysts have also recently commented on AGNC. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their target price on shares of AGNC Investment from $12.00 to $11.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and set a $11.50 price target (up from $11.00) on shares of AGNC Investment in a research note on Friday, July 17th. Weiss Ratings lowered AGNC Investment from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a research report on Thursday, October 8th. Compass Point downgraded AGNC Investment from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $11.50 price target for the company. in a report on Friday, July 17th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on AGNC Investment from $12.00 to $11.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, July 23rd. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $10.89.

AGNC Investment Trading Down 1.1%

NASDAQ:AGNC opened at $8.72 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $10.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 4.59 and a beta of 1.36. AGNC Investment has a 1-year low of $8.41 and a 1-year high of $12.19. The business's 50-day moving average price is $10.01 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $10.41.

AGNC Investment (NASDAQ:AGNC - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, July 20th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.40 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.38 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $305.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations 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 last year, the firm posted ($0.17) earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that AGNC Investment will post 1.60 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Bernice Bell sold 5,000 shares of AGNC Investment stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 28th. The shares were 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 directly owned 406,947 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,476,417. The trade was a 1.21% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Company insiders own 0.40% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Delta Asset Management LLC TN purchased a new position in AGNC Investment during the 2nd quarter valued at about $25,000. Danske Bank A S purchased a new position in shares of AGNC Investment during the second quarter valued at approximately $26,000. MCF Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of AGNC Investment by 254.1% in the second quarter. MCF Advisors LLC now owns 2,408 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 1,728 shares during the last quarter. Osbon Capital Management LLC bought a new position in AGNC Investment in the 2nd quarter worth $28,000. Finally, N.E.W. Advisory Services LLC bought a new stake in shares of AGNC Investment during the second quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 38.28% of the company's stock.

AGNC Investment Company Profile

AGNC Investment Corp. is an internally managed real estate investment trust that invests primarily in agency residential mortgage-backed securities. Its portfolio generally includes mortgage pass-through securities and collateralized mortgage obligations issued or guaranteed by Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, or Ginnie Mae. Because these securities carry government or government-sponsored enterprise backing, the company's investment strategy focuses on interest-rate and prepayment risks rather than traditional residential credit risk.

AGNC finances its investments largely through repurchase agreements and uses interest-rate swaps, swaptions, and other hedging instruments to manage exposure to changing interest rates and funding costs.

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