Heartland Advisors Inc. Sells 125,035 Shares of MGIC Investment Corporation $MTG

Key Points

• Heartland Advisors reduced its MGIC Investment stake by 21.7% in the first quarter, selling 125,035 shares and leaving it with 450,000 shares worth about $11.8 million.
• MGIC Investment reported better-than-expected quarterly earnings of $0.76 per share, though revenue of $297.1 million came in below analyst estimates and was down 3% year over year.
• The company recently approved a $750 million share repurchase plan and paid a quarterly dividend of $0.15 per share, reflecting a 2.0% annualized yield.

Heartland Advisors Inc. cut its stake in MGIC Investment Corporation (NYSE:MTG - Free Report) by 21.7% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 450,000 shares of the insurance provider's stock after selling 125,035 shares during the period. Heartland Advisors Inc. owned approximately 0.21% of MGIC Investment worth $11,812,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of MGIC Investment by 40.3% in the fourth quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. now owns 1,461 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $43,000 after purchasing an additional 420 shares in the last quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund grew its holdings in shares of MGIC Investment by 1.1% during the first quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund now owns 44,972 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $1,181,000 after buying an additional 481 shares in the last quarter. Lido Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of MGIC Investment by 2.2% during the fourth quarter. Lido Advisors LLC now owns 23,799 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $689,000 after buying an additional 522 shares in the last quarter. Victory Financial Group LLC raised its position in MGIC Investment by 1.9% in the 3rd quarter. Victory Financial Group LLC now owns 27,994 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $794,000 after buying an additional 535 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Johnson Financial Group Inc. raised its position in MGIC Investment by 4.0% in the 4th quarter. Johnson Financial Group Inc. now owns 14,180 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $414,000 after buying an additional 540 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 95.58% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have commented on the company. Royal Bank Of Canada assumed coverage on MGIC Investment in a research note on Friday, May 22nd. They issued a "sector perform" rating and a $28.00 target price on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price target on shares of MGIC Investment from $28.00 to $29.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research note on Friday, April 10th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of MGIC Investment from a "buy (b)" rating to a "buy (b+)" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 7th. Finally, Barclays cut their price objective on shares of MGIC Investment from $29.00 to $28.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 1st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $28.25.

MGIC Investment Price Performance

Shares of NYSE MTG opened at $29.46 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13, a current ratio of 1.14 and a quick ratio of 1.14. The business has a 50-day moving average of $26.68 and a 200-day moving average of $26.92. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.35, a PEG ratio of 2.03 and a beta of 0.67. MGIC Investment Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $24.69 and a fifty-two week high of $29.97.

MGIC Investment (NYSE:MTG - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The insurance provider reported $0.76 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.73 by $0.03. MGIC Investment had a return on equity of 14.01% and a net margin of 59.63%.The business had revenue of $297.08 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $303.12 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.75 earnings per share. MGIC Investment's revenue was down 3.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that MGIC Investment Corporation will post 3.05 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

MGIC Investment Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 21st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, May 6th were given a dividend of $0.15 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, May 6th. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.0%. MGIC Investment's payout ratio is 19.05%.

MGIC Investment announced that its Board of Directors has approved a share repurchase plan on Thursday, April 23rd that permits the company to repurchase $750.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the insurance provider to buy up to 12.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically an indication that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Activity at MGIC Investment

In other news, EVP Paula C. Maggio sold 20,937 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $25.55, for a total value of $534,940.35. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 169,620 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,333,791. This represents a 10.99% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, COO Salvatore A. Miosi sold 30,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, June 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $25.38, for a total transaction of $761,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 560,951 shares of the company's stock, valued at $14,236,936.38. This represents a 5.08% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 1.34% of the stock is owned by insiders.

MGIC Investment Company Profile

MGIC Investment Corporation NYSE: MTG is a leading provider of private mortgage insurance in the United States. Established in 1957 as the nation's first private mortgage insurer, MGIC helps lenders manage credit risk and facilitates homeownership by protecting mortgage loans against default. Headquartered in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, the company operates through its principal subsidiary, Mortgage Guaranty Insurance Corporation, and maintains relationships with a broad network of originators and servicers nationwide.

The company's primary business activity involves issuing mortgage insurance policies that enable borrowers to purchase homes with down payments below traditional lending thresholds.

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