Equity Investment Corp Takes Position in AGNC Investment Corp. $AGNC

Equity Investment Corp acquired a new stake in shares of AGNC Investment Corp. (NASDAQ:AGNC) during the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 9,736,044 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock, valued at approximately $106,123,000. AGNC Investment comprises about 2.0% of Equity Investment Corp’s portfolio, making the stock its 27th biggest holding. Equity Investment Corp owned approximately 0.82% of AGNC Investment at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Meeder Advisory Services Inc. bought a new stake in AGNC Investment during the second quarter worth approximately $270,000. BlackRock Inc. bought a new stake in AGNC Investment during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $704,076,000. Deutsche Bank AG bought a new position in AGNC Investment during the second quarter valued at about $1,645,000. Perigon Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of AGNC Investment in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $174,000. Finally, Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of AGNC Investment in the second quarter valued at $69,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 38.28% of the company’s stock.

AGNC Investment Trading Down 0.3%

NASDAQ:AGNC opened at $10.92 on Wednesday. AGNC Investment Corp. has a 12 month low of $9.59 and a 12 month high of $12.19. The business’s 50-day moving average is $10.79 and its 200 day moving average is $10.72. The company has a market capitalization of $12.95 billion, a P/E ratio of 5.75 and a beta of 1.32.

AGNC Investment (NASDAQ:AGNC) last issued its earnings results on Monday, July 20th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.40 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.38 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $305.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.06 billion. AGNC Investment had a net margin of 57.94% and a return on equity of 17.96%. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned ($0.17) EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that AGNC Investment Corp. will post 1.6 earnings per share for the current year.

AGNC Investment Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a monthly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 31st will be given a dividend of $0.12 per share. This represents a c) annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 13.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 31st. AGNC Investment’s payout ratio is presently 75.79%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently weighed in on AGNC. UBS Group upped their price target on shares of AGNC Investment from $10.50 to $11.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, April 24th. Compass Point lowered shares of AGNC Investment from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $11.50 price objective on the stock. in a research note on Friday, July 17th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on shares of AGNC Investment from $12.00 to $11.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, July 23rd. Piper Sandler lifted their price target on AGNC Investment from $11.50 to $12.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 2nd. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of AGNC Investment from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, April 25th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $11.11.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Bernice Bell sold 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $11.00, for a total transaction of $55,000.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 406,947 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,476,417. This represents a 1.21% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.40% of the company’s stock.

AGNC Investment Profile

AGNC Investment Corp. is a self-managed real estate investment trust (REIT) that primarily acquires and manages a portfolio of residential mortgage-backed securities guaranteed by U.S. government-sponsored enterprises such as Ginnie Mae, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. The company employs a leveraged total return strategy, borrowing against its securities to enhance income potential while using interest rate hedges to manage risk. AGNC’s investment objective is to generate attractive monthly dividends and long-term capital appreciation for its shareholders.

Founded in 2008 and headquartered in Bethesda, Maryland, AGNC focuses exclusively on U.S.