Jefferies Financial Group Inc. Makes New $852,000 Investment in Federal Agricultural Mortgage Co. (NYSE:AGM)

Jefferies Financial Group Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Federal Agricultural Mortgage Co. (NYSE:AGM) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 4,325 shares of the credit services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $852,000.

A number of other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AGM. Barclays PLC lifted its stake in Federal Agricultural Mortgage by 181.7% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 18,172 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $3,405,000 after purchasing an additional 11,721 shares in the last quarter. Ellsworth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Federal Agricultural Mortgage by 6.8% during the fourth quarter. Ellsworth Advisors LLC now owns 3,817 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $752,000 after purchasing an additional 243 shares in the last quarter. Kingswood Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Federal Agricultural Mortgage during the fourth quarter worth $209,000. Copeland Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Federal Agricultural Mortgage by 2.5% during the fourth quarter. Copeland Capital Management LLC now owns 297,810 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $58,654,000 after acquiring an additional 7,283 shares during the period. Finally, Yorktown Management & Research Co Inc purchased a new stake in shares of Federal Agricultural Mortgage during the fourth quarter worth $315,000. 68.03% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reaffirmed a “market perform” rating and set a $215.00 price objective (down previously from $230.00) on shares of Federal Agricultural Mortgage in a research report on Monday.

Federal Agricultural Mortgage Stock Up 0.5%

Federal Agricultural Mortgage stock opened at $196.58 on Friday. Federal Agricultural Mortgage Co. has a twelve month low of $159.64 and a twelve month high of $217.60. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $181.70 and its 200-day simple moving average is $194.22. The company has a current ratio of 0.49, a quick ratio of 0.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.58. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.14 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.95, a P/E/G ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 0.97.

Federal Agricultural Mortgage (NYSE:AGM) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, May 9th. The credit services provider reported $4.19 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.00 by $0.19. Federal Agricultural Mortgage had a return on equity of 19.43% and a net margin of 12.75%. The business had revenue of $96.79 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $94.33 million. As a group, equities analysts expect that Federal Agricultural Mortgage Co. will post 17.6 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Federal Agricultural Mortgage Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Investors of record on Monday, June 16th will be issued a $1.50 dividend. This represents a $6.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.05%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 16th. Federal Agricultural Mortgage’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 37.08%.

Insider Activity at Federal Agricultural Mortgage

In related news, Director Sara Louise Faivre-Davis sold 350 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $192.26, for a total value of $67,291.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 1,751 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $336,647.26. This represents a 16.66% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Mitchell A. Johnson sold 2,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $205.21, for a total value of $513,025.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 8,644 shares in the company, valued at $1,773,835.24. This trade represents a 22.43% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 3,850 shares of company stock valued at $782,176 over the last quarter. 2.20% of the stock is owned by insiders.

About Federal Agricultural Mortgage

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.