Federal Agricultural Mortgage Corporation (NYSE:AGM) Sees Significant Decline in Short Interest

Federal Agricultural Mortgage Corporation (NYSE:AGM) was the target of a large decrease in short interest in April. As of April 15th, there was short interest totaling 366,391 shares, a decrease of 15.0% from the March 31st total of 430,997 shares. Currently, 3.5% of the shares of the stock are sold short. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 88,757 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 4.1 days.

Federal Agricultural Mortgage Stock Performance

Federal Agricultural Mortgage stock opened at $174.93 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.57, a quick ratio of 0.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.00. Federal Agricultural Mortgage has a 1 year low of $136.57 and a 1 year high of $210.64. The company has a market cap of $1.90 billion, a PE ratio of 10.51, a PEG ratio of 0.82 and a beta of 1.02. The company’s 50-day moving average is $157.39 and its two-hundred day moving average is $166.20.

Federal Agricultural Mortgage (NYSE:AGM) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 19th. The credit services provider reported $3.66 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.50 by ($0.84). Federal Agricultural Mortgage had a net margin of 15.73% and a return on equity of 17.93%. The business had revenue of $101.39 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $107.45 million. Equities analysts anticipate that Federal Agricultural Mortgage will post 19.41 earnings per share for the current year.

Federal Agricultural Mortgage Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 16th were given a dividend of $1.60 per share. This represents a $6.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.7%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 16th. This is a boost from Federal Agricultural Mortgage’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.50. Federal Agricultural Mortgage’s dividend payout ratio is currently 38.46%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts recently issued reports on AGM shares. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Federal Agricultural Mortgage from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Saturday, February 21st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price target on shares of Federal Agricultural Mortgage from $219.00 to $215.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, February 23rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $215.00.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in AGM. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Federal Agricultural Mortgage by 8.3% during the 1st quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 6,702 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $1,257,000 after purchasing an additional 513 shares during the period. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. lifted its position in Federal Agricultural Mortgage by 5.1% during the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 5,469 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $1,025,000 after purchasing an additional 267 shares during the period. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC lifted its position in Federal Agricultural Mortgage by 10.6% during the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 21,683 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $4,066,000 after purchasing an additional 2,070 shares during the period. Intech Investment Management LLC lifted its position in Federal Agricultural Mortgage by 54.1% during the 1st quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 7,678 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $1,440,000 after purchasing an additional 2,694 shares during the period. Finally, Acadian Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in Federal Agricultural Mortgage during the 1st quarter valued at about $34,000. 68.03% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Federal Agricultural Mortgage Company Profile

Federal Agricultural Mortgage Corporation (NYSE: AGM), commonly known as Farmer Mac, is a government-sponsored enterprise chartered in 1988 under the Agricultural Credit Act of 1987. Headquartered in Washington, DC, Farmer Mac was established to enhance the availability of mortgage credit for the agricultural and rural utility sectors. The corporation operates as a secondary market for agricultural real estate and rural infrastructure loans, providing lenders with liquidity and risk management solutions.

The company’s principal business activities include purchasing and securitizing long-term fixed-rate agricultural mortgage loans and rural utilities loans originated by approved lenders.