Investors Buy Large Volume of AGNC Investment Put Options (NASDAQ:AGNC)

AGNC Investment Corp. (NASDAQ:AGNC) was the recipient of some unusual options trading on Friday. Stock traders acquired 56,948 put options on the company. This is an increase of 41% compared to the average daily volume of 40,489 put options.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on AGNC shares. Piper Sandler increased their price target on shares of AGNC Investment from $11.00 to $11.50 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 15th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods restated a “market perform” rating and set a $12.00 target price (up from $11.00) on shares of AGNC Investment in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of AGNC Investment in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on AGNC Investment from $10.00 to $12.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 28th. Finally, Barclays raised their price objective on shares of AGNC Investment from $9.00 to $10.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 6th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $11.03.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Gary D. Kain sold 700,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $11.91, for a total value of $8,337,000.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 2,189,091 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $26,072,073.81. The trade was a 24.23% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Kenneth L. Pollack sold 50,000 shares of AGNC Investment stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $12.11, for a total value of $605,500.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 552,297 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,688,316.67. This represents a 8.30% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 775,000 shares of company stock valued at $9,246,000 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.42% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of AGNC Investment

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in AGNC. GoalVest Advisory LLC purchased a new stake in shares of AGNC Investment in the fourth quarter worth approximately $26,000. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp acquired a new position in AGNC Investment in the third quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Sound Income Strategies LLC boosted its holdings in AGNC Investment by 61.1% during the fourth quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 2,762 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 1,048 shares in the last quarter. Flagship Harbor Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of AGNC Investment during the 4th quarter valued at about $33,000. Finally, National Bank of Canada FI boosted its position in AGNC Investment by 100.9% during the third quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 3,365 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 1,690 shares in the last quarter. 38.28% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

AGNC Investment Trading Down 1.7%

AGNC Investment stock traded down $0.18 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $10.72. The company had a trading volume of 10,217,416 shares, compared to its average volume of 22,165,254. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a current ratio of 0.21 and a quick ratio of 0.21. AGNC Investment has a 12-month low of $7.85 and a 12-month high of $12.19. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $11.36 and a 200 day moving average price of $10.57. The firm has a market cap of $11.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.66 and a beta of 1.37.

AGNC Investment (NASDAQ:AGNC) last issued its earnings results on Monday, January 26th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.37 by ($0.02). The firm had revenue of $1.12 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $354.75 million. AGNC Investment had a return on equity of 18.32% and a net margin of 47.40%. Equities analysts forecast that AGNC Investment will post 1.61 earnings per share for the current year.

AGNC Investment Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a monthly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 10th. Investors of record on Friday, February 27th will be issued a $0.12 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 27th. This represents a c) annualized dividend and a yield of 13.4%. AGNC Investment’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 102.86%.

AGNC Investment Company Profile

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.