Mariner LLC Trims Stock Position in Federal Agricultural Mortgage Co. (NYSE:AGM)

Mariner LLC decreased its holdings in Federal Agricultural Mortgage Co. (NYSE:AGM) by 93.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 3,355 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 46,176 shares during the quarter. Mariner LLC’s holdings in Federal Agricultural Mortgage were worth $661,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans increased its position in Federal Agricultural Mortgage by 1,589.4% during the fourth quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 356,001 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $70,114,000 after purchasing an additional 334,928 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Federal Agricultural Mortgage during the 4th quarter worth $28,914,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its position 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 worth $59,911,000 after buying an additional 29,917 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. boosted its holdings in Federal Agricultural Mortgage by 10.9% in the fourth quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 220,261 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $43,380,000 after acquiring an additional 21,670 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Boston Partners grew its position in Federal Agricultural Mortgage by 3.8% during the fourth quarter. Boston Partners now owns 415,716 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $81,813,000 after acquiring an additional 15,140 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 68.03% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

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

Federal Agricultural Mortgage Price Performance

Federal Agricultural Mortgage stock opened at $176.51 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.49, a current ratio of 0.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.58. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.92 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.73, a PEG ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 1.01. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $186.63 and a 200-day moving average of $194.57. Federal Agricultural Mortgage Co. has a 52-week low of $159.64 and a 52-week high of $217.60.

Federal Agricultural Mortgage (NYSE:AGM) last issued its earnings results on Friday, February 21st. The credit services provider reported $4.63 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.17 by $0.46. The company had revenue of $101.26 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate 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 in the prior year, the business earned $4.10 earnings per share. As a group, analysts predict that Federal Agricultural Mortgage Co. will post 17.6 EPS for the current year.

Federal Agricultural Mortgage Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th were paid a $1.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 14th. This is an increase from Federal Agricultural Mortgage’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.40. This represents a $6.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.40%. Federal Agricultural Mortgage’s dividend payout ratio is 36.47%.

Insider Activity at Federal Agricultural Mortgage

In other Federal Agricultural Mortgage news, Director Robert G. Sexton bought 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $195.62 per share, with a total value of $195,620.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 13,517 shares in the company, valued at $2,644,195.54. The trade was a 7.99 % increase 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. Also, Director Mitchell A. Johnson sold 2,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 of the company’s stock, valued at $1,773,835.24. This represents a 22.43 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 2.58% of the company’s stock.

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.