Geode Capital Management LLC Purchases 1,596,244 Shares of AGNC Investment Corp. $AGNC

Key Points

• Geode Capital Management boosted its AGNC Investment stake by 5.8% in the fourth quarter, buying 1,596,244 additional shares and ending with 29.1 million shares worth about $312.3 million.
• AGNC posted better-than-expected quarterly EPS of $0.42 versus the $0.36 consensus, though revenue came in below forecasts and analysts currently rate the stock a Hold on average with a $11.06 price target.
• The company announced a monthly dividend of $0.12 payable June 9, implying an annualized yield of about 14.1%; meanwhile, insiders have been selling shares in recent months, including the CEO and a director.

Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of AGNC Investment Corp. (NASDAQ:AGNC - Free Report) by 5.8% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 29,097,741 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after purchasing an additional 1,596,244 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC owned 2.71% of AGNC Investment worth $312,275,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. GoalVest Advisory LLC bought a new stake in shares of AGNC Investment during the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Sound Income Strategies LLC raised its position in shares of AGNC Investment by 61.1% during the 4th quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 2,762 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 1,048 shares during the period. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp bought a new stake in AGNC Investment in the 3rd quarter valued at $29,000. Flagship Harbor Advisors LLC bought a new stake in AGNC Investment in the 4th quarter valued at $33,000. Finally, MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB increased its holdings in AGNC Investment by 110.7% in the 4th quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 3,251 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 1,708 shares during the last quarter. 38.28% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have issued reports on AGNC. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "hold (c)" rating on shares of AGNC Investment in a report on Friday, March 27th. Piper Sandler reduced their price target on shares of AGNC Investment from $12.50 to $10.50 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 2nd. UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of AGNC Investment from $10.50 to $11.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, April 24th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of AGNC Investment from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, April 25th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on shares of AGNC Investment from $12.00 to $11.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 16th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $11.06.

AGNC Investment Trading Down 1.7%

AGNC stock opened at $10.23 on Tuesday. AGNC Investment Corp. has a 12 month low of $8.80 and a 12 month high of $12.19. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $10.45 and a 200 day moving average price of $10.77. The stock has a market cap of $11.74 billion, a PE ratio of 8.45 and a beta of 1.32.

AGNC Investment (NASDAQ:AGNC - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, April 20th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.42 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.36 by $0.06. AGNC Investment had a net margin of 39.50% and a return on equity of 18.31%. The firm had revenue of ($114.00) million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $411.57 million. Sell-side analysts forecast that AGNC Investment Corp. will post 1.56 EPS for the current year.

AGNC Investment Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a monthly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 9th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 29th will be given a $0.12 dividend. This represents a c) annualized dividend and a yield of 14.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 29th. AGNC Investment's payout ratio is 119.01%.

Insider Activity

In other AGNC Investment news, Director Donna Blank sold 22,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $10.78, for a total value of $237,160.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 96,471 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,039,957.38. The trade was a 18.57% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Peter J. Federico sold 64,412 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $11.08, for a total transaction of $713,684.96. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 1,927,083 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $21,352,079.64. This trade represents a 3.23% 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 sold 215,234 shares of company stock valued at $2,364,022. 0.40% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

AGNC Investment Profile

AGNC Investment Corp. is a self-managed real estate investment trust (REIT) that primarily acquires and manages a portfolio of residential mortgage-backed securities guaranteed by U.S. government-sponsored enterprises such as Ginnie Mae, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. The company employs a leveraged total return strategy, borrowing against its securities to enhance income potential while using interest rate hedges to manage risk. AGNC's investment objective is to generate attractive monthly dividends and long-term capital appreciation for its shareholders.

Founded in 2008 and headquartered in Bethesda, Maryland, AGNC focuses exclusively on U.S.

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