Assured Guaranty (NYSE:AGO) Director Francisco Borges Sells 123,750 Shares

Key Points

• Director Francisco Borges sold 123,750 shares at an average of $80.22 for about $9.93 million, reducing his ownership by 41.15% to 176,952 shares, according to an SEC filing.
• EPS beat: Assured Guaranty reported quarterly EPS of $2.32 versus $1.54 expected and revenue of $277 million (up 77.6% year‑over‑year), outperforming analyst estimates.
• The company raised its quarterly dividend to $0.38 (annualized $1.52, 1.9% yield); the stock trades near $81.10 with a $3.64 billion market cap and a consensus "Moderate Buy" target of $98.50.

Assured Guaranty Ltd. (NYSE:AGO - Get Free Report) Director Francisco Borges sold 123,750 shares of Assured Guaranty stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $80.22, for a total value of $9,927,225.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 176,952 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $14,195,089.44. This trade represents a 41.15% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link.

Assured Guaranty Trading Up 0.6%

Shares of Assured Guaranty stock traded up $0.46 on Thursday, reaching $81.10. 20,748 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 291,560. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a current ratio of 0.79. The company has a market capitalization of $3.64 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.92 and a beta of 0.93. The firm's 50-day moving average is $84.73 and its two-hundred day moving average is $85.66. Assured Guaranty Ltd. has a 52 week low of $74.09 and a 52 week high of $92.39.

Assured Guaranty (NYSE:AGO - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 26th. The financial services provider reported $2.32 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.54 by $0.78. The company had revenue of $277.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $205.83 million. Assured Guaranty had a net margin of 45.31% and a return on equity of 7.77%. The business's revenue was up 77.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.27 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Assured Guaranty Ltd. will post 7.3 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Assured Guaranty Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 6th were paid a $0.38 dividend. This represents a $1.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.9%. This is a positive change from Assured Guaranty's previous quarterly dividend of $0.34. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 6th. Assured Guaranty's payout ratio is 14.84%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AGO has been the subject of several analyst reports. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Assured Guaranty in a report on Monday, December 29th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price objective on shares of Assured Guaranty from $108.00 to $103.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, March 19th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $98.50.

Institutional Trading of Assured Guaranty

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. River Road Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in Assured Guaranty by 2.3% in the 4th quarter. River Road Asset Management LLC now owns 1,885,863 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $169,483,000 after purchasing an additional 42,311 shares in the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP grew its position in shares of Assured Guaranty by 9.8% during the 4th quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 1,464,219 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $131,589,000 after acquiring an additional 131,195 shares during the period. Reinhart Partners LLC. increased its holdings in Assured Guaranty by 11.7% in the 4th quarter. Reinhart Partners LLC. now owns 1,262,698 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $113,480,000 after acquiring an additional 132,351 shares in the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. grew its position in shares of Assured Guaranty by 8.8% during the third quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,145,054 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $96,929,000 after purchasing an additional 92,148 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Royce & Associates LP boosted its holdings in shares of Assured Guaranty by 7.1% during the 3rd quarter. Royce & Associates LP now owns 1,035,827 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $87,683,000 after purchasing an additional 69,020 shares during the last quarter. 92.22% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Assured Guaranty

Assured Guaranty Ltd is a Bermuda-domiciled provider of financial guaranty insurance and reinsurance products serving public finance, infrastructure and structured finance markets. The company's primary business activity is credit enhancement, whereby it guarantees the timely payment of principal and interest on debt obligations issued by municipal and infrastructure entities. By combining rigorous risk assessment with active portfolio management, Assured Guaranty helps issuers access capital at more attractive rates while protecting investors against credit events.

In its public finance segment, the company underwrites municipal bond insurance for state and local governments, public-private partnerships and essential infrastructure projects.

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