Federal Agricultural Mortgage Co. (NYSE:AGM) Director Robert G. Sexton Purchases 1,000 Shares

Federal Agricultural Mortgage Co. (NYSE:AGM) Director Robert G. Sexton purchased 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $195.62 per share, with a total value of $195,620.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 13,517 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,644,195.54. This represents a 7.99 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website.

Federal Agricultural Mortgage Trading Down 0.4 %

Federal Agricultural Mortgage stock opened at $190.68 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $2.08 billion, a PE ratio of 11.59, a P/E/G ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 1.11. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $197.12 and a 200 day moving average price of $196.06. Federal Agricultural Mortgage Co. has a 52 week low of $169.17 and a 52 week high of $217.60. The company has a current ratio of 0.49, a quick ratio of 0.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.58.

Federal Agricultural Mortgage (NYSE:AGM) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, February 21st. The credit services provider reported $4.63 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.17 by $0.46. The firm had revenue of $101.26 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $92.81 million. Federal Agricultural Mortgage had a return on equity of 19.43% and a net margin of 12.75%. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $4.10 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that Federal Agricultural Mortgage Co. will post 17.6 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Federal Agricultural Mortgage Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be paid a $1.50 dividend. This is a positive change from Federal Agricultural Mortgage’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.40. This represents a $6.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.15%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. Federal Agricultural Mortgage’s payout ratio is currently 36.47%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price target on Federal Agricultural Mortgage from $205.00 to $230.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Monday, February 24th.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Federal Agricultural Mortgage

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of AGM. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans lifted its stake in shares of Federal Agricultural Mortgage by 1,589.4% in the 4th quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 356,001 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $70,114,000 after purchasing an additional 334,928 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Federal Agricultural Mortgage in the 4th quarter valued at about $28,914,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Federal Agricultural Mortgage by 10.3% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 319,701 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $59,911,000 after purchasing an additional 29,917 shares in the last quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors lifted its stake in shares of Federal Agricultural Mortgage by 12.4% in the 4th quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 255,198 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $50,261,000 after purchasing an additional 28,215 shares in the last quarter. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Federal Agricultural Mortgage by 10.9% in the 4th quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 220,261 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $43,380,000 after purchasing an additional 21,670 shares in the last quarter. 68.03% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Federal Agricultural Mortgage Company Profile

Federal Agricultural Mortgage Corporation provides a secondary market for various loans made to borrowers in the United States. It operates through four segments: Corporate AgFinance, Farm & Ranch, Rural Utilities, and Renewable Energy. The company’s Agricultural Finance line of business engages in purchasing and retaining eligible loans and securities; guaranteeing the payment of principal and interest on securities that represent interests in or obligations secured by pools of eligible loans; servicing eligible loans; and issuing LTSPCs for eligible loans.