AGNC Investment (NASDAQ:AGNC) Hits New 52-Week High – Time to Buy?

AGNC Investment Corp. (NASDAQ:AGNC) shares hit a new 52-week high during trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $12.01 and last traded at $11.9450, with a volume of 5656612 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $11.80.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the company. BTIG Research lowered AGNC Investment from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 6th. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price target on AGNC Investment from $11.00 to $13.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of AGNC Investment from $10.00 to $12.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of AGNC Investment in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of AGNC Investment from $9.50 to $10.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, October 20th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $11.03.

AGNC Investment Trading Down 0.4%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a quick ratio of 0.31 and a current ratio of 0.31. The firm has a market cap of $12.84 billion, a PE ratio of 8.55 and a beta of 1.36. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $10.92 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $10.24.

AGNC Investment (NASDAQ:AGNC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, January 26th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.35 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.37 by ($0.02). The company had revenue of $995.00 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $354.75 million. AGNC Investment had a return on equity of 19.13% and a net margin of 47.40%. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that AGNC Investment Corp. will post 1.61 EPS for the current year.

AGNC Investment Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a monthly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, February 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 30th will be issued a dividend of $0.12 per share. This represents a c) annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 12.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 30th. AGNC Investment’s dividend payout ratio is presently 102.86%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. GoalVest Advisory LLC purchased a new stake in shares of AGNC Investment during the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Sound Income Strategies LLC grew its position 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 valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 1,048 shares during the period. Red Tortoise LLC increased its holdings in AGNC Investment by 377.4% during the second quarter. Red Tortoise LLC now owns 2,764 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 2,185 shares during the last quarter. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp bought a new position in AGNC Investment in the third quarter worth approximately $29,000. Finally, Flagship Harbor Advisors LLC bought a new position in AGNC Investment in the fourth quarter worth approximately $33,000. Institutional investors own 38.28% of the company’s stock.

About AGNC Investment

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.