Intech Investment Management LLC Has $14.41 Million Holdings in Assured Guaranty Ltd. $AGO

Key Points

• Intech Investment Management LLC decreased its stake in Assured Guaranty Ltd. by 2.7%, owning approximately 163,584 shares worth around $14.4 million after selling 4,557 shares.
• Several institutional investors, including Royal Bank of Canada, increased their stakes in Assured Guaranty, which now has approximately 92.22% of its stock owned by institutional investors.
• Assured Guaranty's recent earnings report revealed a net margin of 44.53% but missed earnings estimates, with a reported EPS of $1.01 compared to the consensus estimate of $1.57.

Intech Investment Management LLC lowered its holdings in shares of Assured Guaranty Ltd. (NYSE:AGO - Free Report) by 2.7% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 163,584 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 4,557 shares during the quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC owned about 0.33% of Assured Guaranty worth $14,412,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of AGO. Nuveen LLC bought a new position in shares of Assured Guaranty during the 1st quarter valued at $293,632,000. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its stake in Assured Guaranty by 8,932.0% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 240,161 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $211,580,000 after buying an additional 237,502 shares during the last quarter. Reinhart Partners LLC. grew its stake in Assured Guaranty by 12.8% in the 1st quarter. Reinhart Partners LLC. now owns 1,134,810 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $99,977,000 after buying an additional 129,026 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. grew its stake in Assured Guaranty by 12.1% in the 1st quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,012,552 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $89,206,000 after buying an additional 109,282 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. acquired a new position in Assured Guaranty in the 1st quarter valued at $5,920,000. Institutional investors own 92.22% of the company's stock.

Assured Guaranty Stock Performance

NYSE AGO traded down $0.69 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $82.47. The company had a trading volume of 264,324 shares, compared to its average volume of 296,017. The company has a quick ratio of 0.75, a current ratio of 0.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30. The stock has a market cap of $3.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.11 and a beta of 0.91. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $82.89 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $84.56. Assured Guaranty Ltd. has a fifty-two week low of $74.09 and a fifty-two week high of $96.50.

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

Assured Guaranty Dividend Announcement

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

Insider Buying and Selling at Assured Guaranty

In other news, COO Robert Bailenson sold 40,000 shares of Assured Guaranty stock in a transaction dated 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. The trade was a 12.06% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Company insiders own 5.10% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

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

About Assured Guaranty

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.