MGIC Investment Corporation (NYSE:MTG) Stock Has Average Target Price of $30.80

Key Points

• Analysts maintain a moderately positive view: MGIC Investment has an average “Moderate Buy” rating from eight firms, with an average 12-month price target of $30.80 versus the reported share price of $26.84.
• Quarterly earnings beat expectations: The company reported adjusted earnings of $0.87 per share, exceeding the $0.76 consensus estimate, although revenue declined 2.9% year over year to $295.39 million.
• Dividend increased while insiders sold shares: MGIC raised its quarterly dividend to $0.17 per share, producing a 2.5% annualized yield, while executives sold shares under pre-arranged trading plans over the prior three months.

MGIC Investment Corporation (NYSE:MTG - Get Free Report) has received an average recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from the eight research firms that are covering the stock, MarketBeat.com reports. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, one has given a buy recommendation and two have given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month price target among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $30.80.

Several research firms recently issued reports on MTG. Roth Capital reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $35.00 target price on shares of MGIC Investment in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. BTIG Research assumed coverage on MGIC Investment in a report on Tuesday, September 22nd. They issued a "hold" rating on the stock. Weiss Ratings upgraded MGIC Investment from a "buy (b+)" rating to a "buy (a-)" rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 19th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on MGIC Investment from $29.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research note on Friday, July 31st. Finally, Barclays increased their price objective on shares of MGIC Investment from $28.00 to $29.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Monday, October 5th.

MGIC Investment Stock Down 0.7%

Shares of NYSE:MTG traded down $0.19 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $26.84. 298,470 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,056,204. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $29.80 and a two-hundred day moving average of $28.15. MGIC Investment has a 52-week low of $24.69 and a 52-week high of $31.89. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13, a quick ratio of 1.19 and a current ratio of 1.19. The stock has a market cap of $5.50 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.40, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.70 and a beta of 0.67.

MGIC Investment (NYSE:MTG - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The insurance provider reported $0.87 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.76 by $0.11. The business had revenue of $295.39 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $297.54 million. MGIC Investment had a return on equity of 13.90% and a net margin of 59.20%. The company's quarterly revenue was down 2.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.82 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that MGIC Investment will post 3.24 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

MGIC Investment Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 20th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, August 5th were given a dividend of $0.17 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, August 5th. This is a positive change from MGIC Investment's previous quarterly dividend of $0.15. This represents a $0.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.5%. MGIC Investment's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 21.25%.

Insider Transactions at MGIC Investment

In other news, CEO Timothy Mattke sold 137,114 shares of MGIC Investment stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $26.23, for a total value of $3,596,500.22. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 843,778 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $22,132,296.94. The trade was a 13.98% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, COO Salvatore Miosi sold 30,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $26.06, for a total value of $781,800.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer owned 440,951 shares in the company, valued at $11,491,183.06. This represents a 6.37% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 217,114 shares of company stock valued at $5,906,200. 1.34% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of MTG. Baird Financial Group Inc. grew its stake in MGIC Investment by 3.1% in the 2nd quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. now owns 13,092 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $369,000 after acquiring an additional 392 shares in the last quarter. Compound Planning Inc. raised its stake in shares of MGIC Investment by 4.3% during the first quarter. Compound Planning Inc. now owns 10,392 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $273,000 after acquiring an additional 433 shares in the last quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund boosted its holdings in shares of MGIC Investment by 1.1% in the first quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund now owns 44,972 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $1,181,000 after purchasing an additional 481 shares during the period. Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its holdings in shares of MGIC Investment by 9.4% in the third quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 5,917 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $153,000 after purchasing an additional 508 shares during the period. Finally, Lido Advisors LLC grew its stake in MGIC Investment by 2.4% in the first quarter. Lido Advisors LLC now owns 24,373 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $640,000 after purchasing an additional 574 shares in the last quarter. 95.58% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About MGIC Investment

MGIC Investment Corporation is a holding company whose principal subsidiary, Mortgage Guaranty Insurance Corporation (MGIC), provides private mortgage insurance in the United States. Its insurance helps lenders manage credit risk on residential mortgage loans, particularly loans made to borrowers who provide down payments below traditional thresholds.

MGIC's products are primarily designed for lenders and other mortgage-finance participants, including primary mortgage insurance covering individual residential loans.

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