F&G Annuities & Life (NYSE:FG) Upgraded by Wall Street Zen to “Buy” Rating

F&G Annuities & Life (NYSE:FG) was upgraded by stock analysts at Wall Street Zen from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note issued to investors on Saturday.

A number of other research firms also recently commented on FG. Zacks Research downgraded shares of F&G Annuities & Life from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Monday, February 23rd. Barclays set a $31.00 target price on F&G Annuities & Life in a report on Thursday, January 8th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of F&G Annuities & Life in a report on Monday, December 29th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Reduce” and an average price target of $32.00.

F&G Annuities & Life Trading Down 0.3%

Shares of FG stock opened at $23.54 on Friday. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $25.96 and its two-hundred day moving average is $29.68. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45, a quick ratio of 0.26 and a current ratio of 0.26. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.86 and a beta of 1.59. F&G Annuities & Life has a fifty-two week low of $20.57 and a fifty-two week high of $37.19.

F&G Annuities & Life (NYSE:FG) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 19th. The company reported $0.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.34 by ($0.43). The business had revenue of $739.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.55 billion. F&G Annuities & Life had a return on equity of 10.48% and a net margin of 4.62%. Research analysts expect that F&G Annuities & Life will post 5.54 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

F&G Annuities & Life declared that its Board of Directors has approved a stock buyback plan on Monday, March 16th that allows the company to repurchase $100.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to reacquire up to 3.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are generally a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Christopher O. Blunt purchased 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 13th. The shares were bought at an average price of $20.99 per share, for a total transaction of $209,900.00. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer directly owned 1,107,128 shares in the company, valued at $23,238,616.72. This trade represents a 0.91% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Celina J. Wang Doka purchased 4,760 shares of F&G Annuities & Life stock in a transaction on Friday, March 13th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $20.98 per share, for a total transaction of $99,864.80. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 32,071 shares in the company, valued at $672,849.58. This represents a 17.43% increase in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have bought 19,760 shares of company stock worth $457,565 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 2.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of F&G Annuities & Life

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Elevated Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of F&G Annuities & Life during the fourth quarter worth $27,000. Hantz Financial Services Inc. raised its stake in F&G Annuities & Life by 29,066.7% in the fourth quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 875 shares of the company’s stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 872 shares in the last quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in F&G Annuities & Life by 474.5% during the 3rd quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 902 shares of the company’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 745 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its position in shares of F&G Annuities & Life by 432.6% during the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 932 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 757 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Quadrant Capital Group LLC boosted its position in shares of F&G Annuities & Life by 36,166.7% during the 4th quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 1,088 shares of the company’s stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 1,085 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.86% of the company’s stock.

F&G Annuities & Life Company Profile

F&G Annuities & Life is the principal life insurance and annuity subsidiary of F&G Financial Group, Inc (NYSE: FG), a publicly traded financial services holding company headquartered in Des Moines, Iowa. The company focuses on designing and issuing retirement income solutions that address longevity risk, capital preservation, and wealth transfer for individual and institutional clients.

Its product suite includes fixed indexed annuities, which offer the potential for market-linked growth with downside protection; fixed-rate annuities, delivering guaranteed interest over a defined term; and a range of life insurance policies such as term, universal, and variable universal life.