Federal Agricultural Mortgage (NYSE:AGM) Reaches New 12-Month High - Here's Why

Key Points

• Federal Agricultural Mortgage shares reached a new 52-week high of $213.91 and last traded at $209.45, giving the company a market capitalization of approximately $2.29 billion.
• Analysts maintain a generally positive outlook: Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised its price target to $228 and rated the stock “outperform,” while the consensus rating is “Moderate Buy.”
• The company exceeded quarterly earnings expectations with EPS of $4.74 versus $4.44 forecast, and recently paid a $1.60 quarterly dividend, equivalent to a 3.0% annualized yield.

Federal Agricultural Mortgage Corporation (NYSE:AGM - Get Free Report)'s share price reached a new 52-week high during trading on Monday . The company traded as high as $213.91 and last traded at $209.45, with a volume of 5905 shares. The stock had previously closed at $209.51.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have weighed in on AGM shares. Wall Street Zen raised Federal Agricultural Mortgage from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, May 9th. Weiss Ratings raised Federal Agricultural Mortgage from a "hold (c-)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a report on Monday, June 29th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price target on Federal Agricultural Mortgage from $215.00 to $228.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 12th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $228.00.

Federal Agricultural Mortgage Stock Performance

The stock has a market cap of $2.29 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.19, a P/E/G ratio of 0.96 and a beta of 0.99. The company has a quick ratio of 0.56, a current ratio of 0.56 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.93. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $189.74 and a 200 day simple moving average of $173.65.

Federal Agricultural Mortgage (NYSE:AGM - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The credit services provider reported $4.74 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $4.44 by $0.30. The company had revenue of $109.12 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $110.76 million. Federal Agricultural Mortgage had a net margin of 20.78% and a return on equity of 18.20%. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Federal Agricultural Mortgage Corporation will post 19.75 EPS for the current year.

Federal Agricultural Mortgage Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 15th were paid a dividend of $1.60 per share. This represents a $6.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 15th. Federal Agricultural Mortgage's payout ratio is presently 36.82%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of AGM. First Wilshire Securities Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Federal Agricultural Mortgage by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. First Wilshire Securities Management Inc. now owns 26,616 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $4,673,000 after acquiring an additional 72 shares in the last quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Federal Agricultural Mortgage by 53.6% in the 4th quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 212 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $37,000 after purchasing an additional 74 shares in the last quarter. Bradley Foster & Sargent Inc. CT raised its position in Federal Agricultural Mortgage by 6.5% in the fourth quarter. Bradley Foster & Sargent Inc. CT now owns 1,338 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $235,000 after purchasing an additional 82 shares during the last quarter. Byrne Asset Management LLC raised its position in Federal Agricultural Mortgage by 11.1% in the second quarter. Byrne Asset Management LLC now owns 1,203 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $240,000 after purchasing an additional 120 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Hudson Edge Investment Partners Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Federal Agricultural Mortgage by 2.1% during the fourth quarter. Hudson Edge Investment Partners Inc. now owns 6,000 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $1,053,000 after purchasing an additional 126 shares in the last quarter. 68.03% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Federal Agricultural Mortgage Company Profile

Federal Agricultural Mortgage Corporation NYSE: AGM, commonly known as Farmer Mac, is a government-sponsored enterprise chartered in 1988 under the Agricultural Credit Act of 1987. Headquartered in Washington, DC, Farmer Mac was established to enhance the availability of mortgage credit for the agricultural and rural utility sectors. The corporation operates as a secondary market for agricultural real estate and rural infrastructure loans, providing lenders with liquidity and risk management solutions.

The company's principal business activities include purchasing and securitizing long-term fixed-rate agricultural mortgage loans and rural utilities loans originated by approved lenders.

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