Federal Agricultural Mortgage Corporation (NYSE:AGM) Raises Dividend to $1.60 Per Share

Federal Agricultural Mortgage Corporation (NYSE:AGM) declared a quarterly dividend on Thursday, February 19th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 16th will be paid a dividend of 1.60 per share by the credit services provider on Tuesday, March 31st. This represents a c) annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 16th. This is a 6.7% increase from Federal Agricultural Mortgage’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.50.

Federal Agricultural Mortgage has increased its dividend payment by an average of 0.1%per year over the last three years and has increased its dividend annually for the last 14 consecutive years. Federal Agricultural Mortgage has a dividend payout ratio of 31.1% indicating that its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Equities analysts expect Federal Agricultural Mortgage to earn $18.28 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $6.00 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 32.8%.

Federal Agricultural Mortgage Stock Down 11.8%

AGM traded down $20.62 on Friday, hitting $153.42. 194,236 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 113,723. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $174.68 and its 200-day moving average is $176.05. Federal Agricultural Mortgage has a 12 month low of $151.73 and a 12 month high of $212.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.81, a quick ratio of 0.56 and a current ratio of 0.56. The company has a market cap of $1.67 billion, a PE ratio of 8.73, a PEG ratio of 0.82 and a beta of 0.99.

Federal Agricultural Mortgage (NYSE:AGM) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 19th. The credit services provider reported $3.66 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.50 by ($0.84). Federal Agricultural Mortgage had a return on equity of 18.63% and a net margin of 13.38%.The company had revenue of $101.39 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $107.45 million. Equities research analysts predict that Federal Agricultural Mortgage will post 17.6 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Federal Agricultural Mortgage

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Capital World Investors acquired a new position in Federal Agricultural Mortgage during the third quarter worth about $46,324,000. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. increased its holdings in shares of Federal Agricultural Mortgage by 261,128.6% during the fourth quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 128,002 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $22,473,000 after buying an additional 127,953 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its stake in shares of Federal Agricultural Mortgage by 44.5% in the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 262,931 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $46,163,000 after acquiring an additional 80,911 shares during the last quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors boosted its holdings in shares of Federal Agricultural Mortgage by 14.8% during the 4th quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 358,908 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $63,013,000 after acquiring an additional 46,262 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Man Group plc grew its position in Federal Agricultural Mortgage by 1,262.0% during the 3rd quarter. Man Group plc now owns 47,508 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $7,980,000 after acquiring an additional 44,020 shares during the last quarter. 68.03% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Federal Agricultural Mortgage

Federal Agricultural Mortgage Corporation (NYSE: AGM), commonly known as Farmer Mac, is a government-sponsored enterprise chartered in 1988 under the Agricultural Credit Act of 1987. Headquartered in Washington, DC, Farmer Mac was established to enhance the availability of mortgage credit for the agricultural and rural utility sectors. The corporation operates as a secondary market for agricultural real estate and rural infrastructure loans, providing lenders with liquidity and risk management solutions.

The company’s principal business activities include purchasing and securitizing long-term fixed-rate agricultural mortgage loans and rural utilities loans originated by approved lenders.