AGNC Investment (NASDAQ:AGNC) Stock Price Expected to Rise, JPMorgan Chase & Co. Analyst Says

Key Points

• JPMorgan raised AGNC Investment’s price target from $8.00 to $8.50 while maintaining a “neutral” rating, implying 3.68% downside from the prior close.
• Analyst sentiment remains cautious: AGNC has an overall “Hold” consensus, with three Buy ratings and eight Holds, and an average target price of $10.12. Several firms recently lowered their targets, though Wells Fargo and RBC retained bullish ratings.
• AGNC shares closed at $8.82, near the lower end of their 52-week range, while the company’s latest quarterly results matched earnings expectations at $0.37 per share and exceeded revenue estimates with $1.20 billion.

AGNC Investment (NASDAQ:AGNC - Get Free Report) had its target price boosted by JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $8.00 to $8.50 in a research note issued to investors on Friday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a "neutral" rating on the real estate investment trust's stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co.'s price objective would indicate a potential downside of 3.68% from the stock's previous close.

Other analysts have also recently issued research reports about the company. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on AGNC Investment from $11.00 to $10.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday. Royal Bank Of Canada cut their price target on AGNC Investment from $12.00 to $10.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday. Compass Point downgraded shares of AGNC Investment from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $11.50 price target on the stock. in a research report on Friday, July 17th. Barclays decreased their price objective on shares of AGNC Investment from $10.00 to $9.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price objective on shares of AGNC Investment from $12.00 to $11.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $10.12.

AGNC Investment Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:AGNC traded down $0.07 on Friday, hitting $8.82. The stock had a trading volume of 7,557,949 shares, compared to its average volume of 21,786,785. The company has a market capitalization of $10.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 883.38 and a beta of 1.36. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $9.84 and its 200-day moving average price is $10.37. AGNC Investment has a twelve month low of $8.38 and a twelve month high of $12.19.

AGNC Investment (NASDAQ:AGNC - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, October 19th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.37 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.37. AGNC Investment had a net margin of 2.45% and a return on equity of 18.74%. The firm had revenue of $1.20 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.06 billion. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that AGNC Investment will post 1.59 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at AGNC Investment

In other news, EVP Bernice Bell sold 5,000 shares of the company's 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 transaction, the executive vice president owned 406,947 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,476,417. This represents a 1.21% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 0.40% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of AGNC Investment

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new position in AGNC Investment during the 2nd quarter valued at about $704,076,000. Equity Investment Corp bought a new stake in shares of AGNC Investment during the second quarter worth approximately $106,123,000. Bank of America Corp DE bought a new stake in shares of AGNC Investment during the second quarter worth approximately $77,501,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new position in AGNC Investment in the second quarter valued at approximately $40,182,000. Finally, Advisors Capital Management LLC bought a new position in AGNC Investment in the second quarter valued at approximately $35,421,000. 38.28% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

AGNC Investment Company Profile

AGNC Investment Corp. is a real estate investment trust (REIT) that invests primarily in residential mortgage pass-through securities and collateralized mortgage obligations for which principal and interest payments are guaranteed by a U.S. government-sponsored enterprise or a U.S. government agency. These investments are commonly referred to as agency mortgage-backed securities.

The company seeks to generate income through the difference between the yield on its investment portfolio and its borrowing costs, while managing interest-rate, prepayment and other market risks.

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