Short Interest in Federal Agricultural Mortgage Corporation (NYSE:AGM) Expands By 17.8%

Federal Agricultural Mortgage Corporation (NYSE:AGM) was the recipient of a large increase in short interest during the month of March. As of March 13th, there was short interest totaling 352,399 shares, an increase of 17.8% from the February 26th total of 299,122 shares. Currently, 3.3% of the company’s stock are sold short. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 96,295 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 3.7 days.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have commented on AGM. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Federal Agricultural Mortgage from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Saturday, February 21st. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Federal Agricultural Mortgage in a research report on Monday, December 22nd. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price target on Federal Agricultural Mortgage from $219.00 to $215.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, February 23rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $215.00.

Institutional Trading of Federal Agricultural Mortgage

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Allworth Financial LP lifted its position in shares of Federal Agricultural Mortgage by 640.0% during the 4th quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 185 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 160 shares during the last quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Federal Agricultural Mortgage during the 1st quarter worth $34,000. Farther Finance Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Federal Agricultural Mortgage by 53.6% in the 4th quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 212 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $37,000 after acquiring an additional 74 shares during the last quarter. Kestra Advisory Services LLC purchased a new stake in Federal Agricultural Mortgage in the 4th quarter worth about $40,000. Finally, Jones Financial Companies Lllp raised its stake in Federal Agricultural Mortgage by 124.0% in the 3rd quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 271 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $47,000 after acquiring an additional 150 shares during the period. 68.03% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Federal Agricultural Mortgage Stock Performance

NYSE AGM opened at $149.04 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $1.62 billion, a PE ratio of 8.96, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.69 and a beta of 0.95. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.00, a quick ratio of 0.57 and a current ratio of 0.57. Federal Agricultural Mortgage has a 52-week low of $136.57 and a 52-week high of $210.64. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $161.01 and a 200 day simple moving average of $167.25.

Federal Agricultural Mortgage (NYSE:AGM) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 19th. The credit services provider reported $3.66 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.50 by ($0.84). Federal Agricultural Mortgage had a net margin of 15.73% and a return on equity of 17.93%. The company had revenue of $101.39 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $107.45 million. On average, research analysts predict that Federal Agricultural Mortgage will post 17.6 EPS for the current year.

Federal Agricultural Mortgage Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Investors of record on Monday, March 16th were paid a $1.60 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 16th. This is a positive change from Federal Agricultural Mortgage’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.50. This represents a $6.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.3%. Federal Agricultural Mortgage’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 38.46%.

Federal Agricultural Mortgage Company Profile

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.