The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company Makes New Investment in Assured Guaranty Ltd. $AGO

Key Points

• The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company acquired 78,581 shares of Assured Guaranty worth approximately $6.3 million, joining other institutions that increased their positions. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.22% of the company.
• Assured Guaranty reported quarterly earnings of $1.23 per share on $195 million in revenue and declared a quarterly dividend of $0.38, equivalent to a 2.0% annualized yield.
• AGO shares opened at $75.55, below the consensus analyst target of $90.33. Analysts have a consensus “Hold” rating, while insider ownership stands at 5.70% following a major shareholder’s purchase of 209,388 shares.

The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company purchased a new stake in shares of Assured Guaranty Ltd. (NYSE:AGO - Free Report) in the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm purchased 78,581 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $6,299,000. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company owned approximately 0.18% of Assured Guaranty as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Royal Bank of Canada raised its stake in shares of Assured Guaranty by 61.6% in the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 59,010 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $5,198,000 after buying an additional 22,486 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC boosted its stake in Assured Guaranty by 7.3% during the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 238,638 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $21,024,000 after buying an additional 16,235 shares in the last quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. grew its holdings in Assured Guaranty by 8.9% during the second quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. now owns 3,600 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $322,000 after acquiring an additional 295 shares during the period. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Assured Guaranty by 99.5% during the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 868 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $76,000 after acquiring an additional 433 shares during the period. Finally, Marshall Wace LLP bought a new stake in Assured Guaranty in the second quarter worth about $553,000. 92.22% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, major shareholder Guaranty Ltd Assured acquired 209,388 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 22nd. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $24.83 per share, for a total transaction of $5,199,104.04. Following the transaction, the insider owned 1,212,106 shares in the company, valued at approximately $30,096,591.98. This trade represents a 20.88% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders own 5.70% of the company's stock.

Assured Guaranty Trading Up 0.0%

NYSE:AGO opened at $75.55 on Monday. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $80.35 and a 200 day simple moving average of $80.86. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.07 and a beta of 0.75. Assured Guaranty Ltd. has a 1-year low of $72.76 and a 1-year high of $92.39. The company has a quick ratio of 0.64, a current ratio of 0.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31.

Assured Guaranty (NYSE:AGO - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, June 30th. The financial services provider reported $1.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. The firm had revenue of $195.00 million for the quarter. Assured Guaranty had a return on equity of 7.11% and a net margin of 37.34%. Sell-side analysts forecast that Assured Guaranty Ltd. will post 6.91 earnings per share for the current year.

Assured Guaranty Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 3rd. Investors of record on Thursday, August 20th will be paid a $0.38 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 20th. This represents a $1.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.0%. Assured Guaranty's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 20.27%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have weighed in on AGO. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Assured Guaranty from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Sunday, August 16th. Roth Capital downgraded shares of Assured Guaranty from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $80.00 target price on the stock. in a report on Friday, May 8th. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Assured Guaranty from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a research note on Monday, August 3rd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their target price on shares of Assured Guaranty from $101.00 to $97.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, August 13th. Finally, UBS Group upgraded shares of Assured Guaranty from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $94.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Monday, May 18th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Assured Guaranty presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $90.33.

About Assured Guaranty

Assured Guaranty Ltd is a Bermuda-domiciled provider of financial guaranty insurance and reinsurance products serving public finance, infrastructure and structured finance markets. The company's primary business activity is credit enhancement, whereby it guarantees the timely payment of principal and interest on debt obligations issued by municipal and infrastructure entities. By combining rigorous risk assessment with active portfolio management, Assured Guaranty helps issuers access capital at more attractive rates while protecting investors against credit events.

In its public finance segment, the company underwrites municipal bond insurance for state and local governments, public-private partnerships and essential infrastructure projects.

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