F&G Annuities & Life, Inc. (NYSE:FG) Sees Large Growth in Short Interest

F&G Annuities & Life, Inc. (NYSE:FG) was the target of a large increase in short interest during the month of December. As of December 31st, there was short interest totaling 1,542,256 shares, an increase of 70.5% from the December 15th total of 904,498 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 832,696 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 1.9 days. Approximately 1.2% of the company’s stock are short sold. Approximately 1.2% of the company’s stock are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 832,696 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 1.9 days.

Insider Transactions at F&G Annuities & Life

In related news, CEO Christopher O. Blunt bought 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 2nd. The shares were bought at an average cost of $29.56 per share, for a total transaction of $147,800.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief executive officer directly owned 1,117,396 shares in the company, valued at approximately $33,030,225.76. This represents a 0.45% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 2.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Voya Investment Management LLC grew its stake in shares of F&G Annuities & Life by 5.6% in the 1st quarter. Voya Investment Management LLC now owns 6,309 shares of the company’s stock valued at $227,000 after purchasing an additional 334 shares during the period. Ameritas Investment Partners Inc. boosted its stake in F&G Annuities & Life by 18.3% in the 2nd quarter. Ameritas Investment Partners Inc. now owns 2,174 shares of the company’s stock valued at $70,000 after buying an additional 337 shares in the last quarter. Stoneridge Investment Partners LLC grew its position in F&G Annuities & Life by 6.7% in the third quarter. Stoneridge Investment Partners LLC now owns 6,869 shares of the company’s stock valued at $215,000 after acquiring an additional 429 shares during the period. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. raised its stake in F&G Annuities & Life by 4.3% during the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 11,035 shares of the company’s stock worth $398,000 after acquiring an additional 452 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Iron Horse Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in F&G Annuities & Life by 11.6% during the second quarter. Iron Horse Wealth Management LLC now owns 5,222 shares of the company’s stock worth $167,000 after acquiring an additional 543 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 95.86% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

FG has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Wall Street Zen downgraded F&G Annuities & Life from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, January 10th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of F&G Annuities & Life in a report on Monday, December 29th. Barclays set a $31.00 price objective on shares of F&G Annuities & Life in a research note on Thursday, January 8th. Piper Sandler set a $33.00 target price on shares of F&G Annuities & Life in a research report on Tuesday, October 7th. Finally, Zacks Research downgraded shares of F&G Annuities & Life from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 6th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, According to MarketBeat.com, F&G Annuities & Life currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $37.00.

F&G Annuities & Life Stock Performance

Shares of FG traded down $0.21 on Friday, reaching $27.53. 778,175 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,082,146. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $31.53 and its 200-day moving average price is $31.87. 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 firm has a market cap of $3.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.07 and a beta of 1.46. F&G Annuities & Life has a 12 month low of $27.11 and a 12 month high of $47.76.

F&G Annuities & Life (NYSE:FG) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 6th. The company reported $1.22 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.02 by $0.20. The firm had revenue of $737.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.40 billion. F&G Annuities & Life had a net margin of 8.40% and a return on equity of 11.41%. Equities analysts forecast that F&G Annuities & Life will post 5.54 EPS for the current fiscal year.

F&G Annuities & Life Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, December 31st. Investors of record on Wednesday, December 17th were paid a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, December 17th. This is an increase from F&G Annuities & Life’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.6%. F&G Annuities & Life’s payout ratio is presently 29.33%.

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.