The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company Takes Position in AGNC Investment Corp. $AGNC

The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company purchased a new position in AGNC Investment Corp. (NASDAQ:AGNC) during the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 549,291 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock, valued at approximately $5,987,000.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. BlackRock Inc. bought a new stake in AGNC Investment during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $704,076,000. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in AGNC Investment by 5.8% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 29,097,741 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $312,275,000 after purchasing an additional 1,596,244 shares during the period. State Street Corp grew its position in shares of AGNC Investment by 6.4% during the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 18,245,939 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $197,774,000 after purchasing an additional 1,090,374 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of AGNC Investment during the 4th quarter valued at $141,830,000. Finally, Equity Investment Corp bought a new position in shares of AGNC Investment in the second quarter worth $106,123,000. 38.28% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Compass Point downgraded AGNC Investment from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $11.50 price objective on the stock. in a research report on Friday, July 17th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their target price on AGNC Investment from $12.00 to $11.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 22nd. Weiss Ratings upgraded AGNC Investment from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Monday, August 17th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on AGNC Investment from $12.00 to $11.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, July 23rd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $11.50 price target (up from $11.00) on shares of AGNC Investment in a research report on Friday, July 17th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $11.11.

Insider Activity at AGNC Investment

In other news, EVP Bernice Bell sold 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $11.00, for a total value of $55,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 406,947 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,476,417. The trade was a 1.21% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.40% of the company’s stock.

AGNC Investment Stock Down 1.6%

Shares of AGNC stock opened at $10.73 on Tuesday. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $10.89 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $10.69. AGNC Investment Corp. has a 12-month low of $9.62 and a 12-month high of $12.19. The firm has a market cap of $12.72 billion, a P/E ratio of 5.65 and a beta of 1.32.

AGNC Investment (NASDAQ:AGNC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, July 20th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.40 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.38 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $305.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.06 billion. AGNC Investment had a return on equity of 17.96% and a net margin of 57.94%.During the same period in the prior year, the company earned ($0.17) EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that AGNC Investment Corp. will post 1.6 EPS for the current fiscal year.

AGNC Investment Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a monthly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 31st will be paid a dividend of $0.12 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 31st. This represents a c) annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 13.4%. AGNC Investment’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 75.79%.

About AGNC Investment

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.