AGNC Investment (NASDAQ:AGNC) Stock Price Up 4% – Still a Buy?

AGNC Investment Corp. (NASDAQ:AGNC)’s stock price rose 4% during trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $11.10 and last traded at $11.07. Approximately 31,163,403 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 66% from the average daily volume of 18,750,559 shares. The stock had previously closed at $10.64.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on AGNC. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $11.50 price objective (up from $11.00) on shares of AGNC Investment in a research note on Friday, July 17th. Compass Point cut AGNC Investment from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $11.50 price target on the stock. in a research note on Friday, July 17th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on AGNC Investment from $12.00 to $11.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, July 23rd. UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of AGNC Investment from $10.50 to $11.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, April 24th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their price target on shares of AGNC Investment from $12.00 to $11.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $11.11.

AGNC Investment Stock Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $12.54 billion, a P/E ratio of 5.75 and a beta of 1.31. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $10.64 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $10.81.

AGNC Investment (NASDAQ:AGNC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, July 20th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.40 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.38 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $305.00 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.06 billion. AGNC Investment had a return on equity of 18.20% and a net margin of 57.94%.During the same quarter last year, the firm posted ($0.17) earnings per share. Equities analysts anticipate that AGNC Investment Corp. will post 1.6 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AGNC Investment Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a monthly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, August 11th. Investors of record on Friday, July 31st will be paid a $0.12 dividend. This represents a c) dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 13.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, July 31st. AGNC Investment’s dividend payout ratio is presently 75.79%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other AGNC Investment news, Director Donna Blank sold 22,000 shares of AGNC Investment stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $10.78, for a total transaction of $237,160.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 96,471 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,039,957.38. The trade was a 18.57% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 0.40% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On AGNC Investment

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in AGNC. AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of AGNC Investment by 51.9% during the 1st quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 64,100 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $614,000 after buying an additional 21,897 shares in the last quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC lifted its position in AGNC Investment by 38.4% during the 1st quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 24,941 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $239,000 after acquiring an additional 6,923 shares during the period. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC boosted its stake in AGNC Investment by 16.0% during the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 2,811,782 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $26,937,000 after acquiring an additional 387,524 shares in the last quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC grew its holdings in AGNC Investment by 57.8% in the second quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 37,642 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $346,000 after purchasing an additional 13,793 shares during the period. Finally, Invesco Ltd. increased its stake in shares of AGNC Investment by 8.9% during the second quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 2,494,606 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $22,925,000 after purchasing an additional 203,610 shares in the last quarter. 38.28% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.