AQR Capital Management LLC Sells 320,508 Shares of Assured Guaranty Ltd. $AGO

Key Points

• AQR Capital Management LLC reduced its position in Assured Guaranty Ltd. by 32.1%, now holding 677,114 shares worth approximately $59.07 million.
• Assured Guaranty reported an EPS of $1.01 this quarter, missing analysts' expectations of $1.57, despite a 39.1% increase in revenue year-over-year.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.34 per share, resulting in an annualized dividend yield of 1.7%.

AQR Capital Management LLC lowered its position in Assured Guaranty Ltd. (NYSE:AGO - Free Report) by 32.1% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 677,114 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 320,508 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC owned about 1.38% of Assured Guaranty worth $59,065,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in AGO. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in Assured Guaranty in the 1st quarter valued at about $1,305,000. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Assured Guaranty by 7.9% in the 1st quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 79,865 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $7,036,000 after buying an additional 5,826 shares during the last quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. grew its holdings in shares of Assured Guaranty by 41.7% in the first quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 70,622 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $6,222,000 after acquiring an additional 20,779 shares in the last quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas purchased a new stake in shares of Assured Guaranty during the first quarter valued at approximately $624,000. Finally, Cetera Investment Advisers lifted its holdings in Assured Guaranty by 7.0% during the fourth quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 4,074 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $367,000 after acquiring an additional 266 shares during the period. 92.22% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Assured Guaranty Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE AGO traded down $0.69 during trading on Friday, reaching $82.47. 264,324 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 296,017. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30, a current ratio of 0.75 and a quick ratio of 0.75. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.93 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.11 and a beta of 0.91. Assured Guaranty Ltd. has a 52-week low of $74.09 and a 52-week high of $96.50. The company has a 50-day moving average of $82.89 and a 200-day moving average of $84.60.

Assured Guaranty (NYSE:AGO - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 7th. The financial services provider reported $1.01 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.57 by ($0.56). The firm had revenue of $281.00 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $203.91 million. Assured Guaranty had a return on equity of 7.18% and a net margin of 44.53%.The company's revenue was up 39.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.44 EPS. Analysts forecast that Assured Guaranty Ltd. will post 7.3 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Assured Guaranty Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 3rd. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, August 20th were given a $0.34 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, August 20th. This represents a $1.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.6%. Assured Guaranty's payout ratio is 15.03%.

Insider Activity at Assured Guaranty

In related news, COO Robert Bailenson sold 40,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $81.51, for a total transaction of $3,260,400.00. Following the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 291,728 shares in the company, valued at approximately $23,778,749.28. This represents a 12.06% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 5.10% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the company. Wall Street Zen downgraded Assured Guaranty from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 9th. Zacks Research raised shares of Assured Guaranty to a "strong sell" rating in a report on Friday, August 8th. Finally, UBS Group reduced their price target on shares of Assured Guaranty from $95.00 to $92.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, August 13th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $98.50.

Assured Guaranty Company Profile

Assured Guaranty Ltd., together with its subsidiaries, provides credit protection products to public finance, infrastructure, and structured finance markets in the United States and internationally. It operates through two segments: Insurance and Asset Management. The company offers financial guaranty insurance that protects holders of debt instruments and other monetary obligations from defaults in scheduled payments.