Geode Capital Management LLC Sells 25,278 Shares of Assured Guaranty Ltd. (NYSE:AGO)

Geode Capital Management LLC cut its position in Assured Guaranty Ltd. (NYSE:AGO - Free Report) by 3.1% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 797,664 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 25,278 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC owned about 1.57% of Assured Guaranty worth $71,820,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of AGO. M&T Bank Corp raised its stake in Assured Guaranty by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 21,508 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,935,000 after buying an additional 110 shares during the period. HighTower Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Assured Guaranty by 1.1% during the fourth quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 10,083 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $908,000 after purchasing an additional 113 shares during the period. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank lifted its holdings in shares of Assured Guaranty by 1.0% during the 4th quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 12,590 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,133,000 after purchasing an additional 124 shares in the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Assured Guaranty by 46.3% during the 4th quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 471 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $42,000 after purchasing an additional 149 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Assured Guaranty by 6.1% in the 4th quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. now owns 4,929 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $444,000 after purchasing an additional 282 shares during the period. 92.22% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Assured Guaranty Stock Up 1.1 %

AGO traded up $0.88 during trading on Thursday, reaching $83.63. The company had a trading volume of 27,298 shares, compared to its average volume of 353,851. The company has a market cap of $4.18 billion, a P/E ratio of 6.50 and a beta of 0.84. Assured Guaranty Ltd. has a 12 month low of $72.57 and a 12 month high of $96.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 0.91 and a quick ratio of 0.91. The business's fifty day moving average price is $86.47 and its 200 day moving average price is $87.92.

Assured Guaranty (NYSE:AGO - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 27th. The financial services provider reported $1.27 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.34 by ($0.07). The company had revenue of $199.00 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $199.56 million. Assured Guaranty had a net margin of 70.37% and a return on equity of 11.58%. Equities analysts anticipate that Assured Guaranty Ltd. will post 7.3 EPS for the current year.

Assured Guaranty Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, March 5th were given a dividend of $0.34 per share. This is a boost from Assured Guaranty's previous quarterly dividend of $0.31. This represents a $1.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.63%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 5th. Assured Guaranty's dividend payout ratio is currently 19.94%.

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.