Federal Agricultural Mortgage (NYSE:AGM) Shares Gap Down - Here's Why

Federal Agricultural Mortgage Corporation (NYSE:AGM - Get Free Report)'s stock price gapped down prior to trading on Friday . The stock had previously closed at $196.47, but opened at $189.80. Federal Agricultural Mortgage shares last traded at $187.62, with a volume of 14,236 shares traded.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reissued a "market perform" rating and issued a $215.00 target price (down previously from $230.00) on shares of Federal Agricultural Mortgage in a research report on Monday, May 12th.

Federal Agricultural Mortgage Trading Down 9.8%

The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $189.93 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $190.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.74, a quick ratio of 0.53 and a current ratio of 0.53. The firm has a market cap of $1.94 billion, a PE ratio of 10.96, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.46 and a beta of 0.99.

Federal Agricultural Mortgage (NYSE:AGM - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Friday, May 9th. The credit services provider reported $4.19 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $4.00 by $0.19. Federal Agricultural Mortgage had a return on equity of 18.77% and a net margin of 12.65%. The business had revenue of $96.79 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $94.33 million. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Federal Agricultural Mortgage Corporation will post 17.6 EPS for the current year.

Federal Agricultural Mortgage Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 16th were given a dividend of $1.50 per share. This represents a $6.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.38%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 16th. Federal Agricultural Mortgage's payout ratio is currently 37.08%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Sara Louise Faivre-Davis sold 350 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $192.26, for a total transaction of $67,291.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 1,751 shares of the company's stock, valued at $336,647.26. This represents a 16.66% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director Eric T. Mckissack sold 728 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $192.37, for a total transaction of $140,045.36. Following the sale, the director directly owned 2,357 shares of the company's stock, valued at $453,416.09. The trade was a 23.60% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 2.20% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Federal Agricultural Mortgage

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Napatree Capital LLC increased its position in shares of Federal Agricultural Mortgage by 6.8% during the 4th quarter. Napatree Capital LLC now owns 1,423 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $280,000 after purchasing an additional 91 shares during the last quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers increased its holdings in Federal Agricultural Mortgage by 5.0% in the 4th quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 2,626 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $517,000 after acquiring an additional 125 shares in the last quarter. Byrne Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in Federal Agricultural Mortgage by 116.1% in the 1st quarter. Byrne Asset Management LLC now owns 242 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $45,000 after acquiring an additional 130 shares in the last quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. increased its holdings in Federal Agricultural Mortgage by 0.8% in the 4th quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. now owns 17,872 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $3,520,000 after acquiring an additional 135 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Avantax Advisory Services Inc. increased its holdings in Federal Agricultural Mortgage by 4.5% in the 4th quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. now owns 3,475 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $684,000 after acquiring an additional 150 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 68.03% of the company's stock.

About Federal Agricultural Mortgage

Federal Agricultural Mortgage Corporation provides a secondary market for various loans made to borrowers in the United States. It operates through four segments: Corporate AgFinance, Farm & Ranch, Rural Utilities, and Renewable Energy. The company's Agricultural Finance line of business engages in purchasing and retaining eligible loans and securities; guaranteeing the payment of principal and interest on securities that represent interests in or obligations secured by pools of eligible loans; servicing eligible loans; and issuing LTSPCs for eligible loans.