Short Interest in F&G Annuities & Life, Inc. (NYSE:FG) Expands By 21.3%

F&G Annuities & Life, Inc. (NYSE:FG) was the recipient of a significant growth in short interest in the month of February. As of February 13th, there was short interest totaling 1,621,481 shares, a growth of 21.3% from the January 29th total of 1,337,154 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 494,995 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 3.3 days. Approximately 1.2% of the shares of the stock are short sold. Approximately 1.2% of the shares of the stock are short sold. Based on an average trading volume of 494,995 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 3.3 days.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Christopher O. Blunt acquired 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 2nd. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $29.56 per share, for a total transaction of $147,800.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer directly owned 1,117,396 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $33,030,225.76. The trade was a 0.45% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 2.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On F&G Annuities & Life

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Elevated Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in F&G Annuities & Life in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Hantz Financial Services Inc. lifted its stake in shares of F&G Annuities & Life by 29,066.7% in the 4th quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 875 shares of the company’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 872 shares during the period. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. boosted its position in shares of F&G Annuities & Life by 474.5% in the 3rd quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 902 shares of the company’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 745 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its position in shares of F&G Annuities & Life by 432.6% in the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 932 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 757 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Quadrant Capital Group LLC grew its stake in shares of F&G Annuities & Life by 36,166.7% during the fourth quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 1,088 shares of the company’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 1,085 shares during the period. 95.86% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

F&G Annuities & Life Stock Performance

FG stock opened at $22.71 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45, a current ratio of 0.27 and a quick ratio of 0.27. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $28.00 and a 200 day moving average price of $30.70. F&G Annuities & Life has a fifty-two week low of $21.38 and a fifty-two week high of $42.84. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.08 billion, a PE ratio of 12.41 and a beta of 1.59.

F&G Annuities & Life (NYSE:FG) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 19th. The company reported $0.91 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.34 by ($0.43). The firm had revenue of $739.00 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.55 billion. F&G Annuities & Life had a net margin of 4.62% and a return on equity of 10.62%. Analysts forecast that F&G Annuities & Life will post 5.54 EPS for the current year.

F&G Annuities & Life Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 17th will be issued a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 17th. F&G Annuities & Life’s payout ratio is currently 54.64%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Zacks Research cut shares of F&G Annuities & Life from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Monday, February 23rd. Barclays set a $31.00 target price on shares of F&G Annuities & Life in a research note on Thursday, January 8th. Wall Street Zen lowered F&G Annuities & Life from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, February 21st. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of F&G Annuities & Life in a report on Monday, December 29th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Reduce” and a consensus target price of $32.00.

About F&G Annuities & Life

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.