Federal Agricultural Mortgage Co. (NYSE:AGM) Sees Significant Decrease in Short Interest

Federal Agricultural Mortgage Co. (NYSE:AGM) was the target of a large decline in short interest during the month of June. As of June 15th, there was short interest totalling 100,100 shares, a decline of 11.5% from the May 31st total of 113,100 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 44,100 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 2.3 days. Approximately 1.1% of the shares of the company are sold short.

Federal Agricultural Mortgage Price Performance

Shares of AGM traded down $1.12 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $181.47. 21,754 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 59,277. The company has a market cap of $1.97 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.22, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 1.03. The company has a current ratio of 0.46, a quick ratio of 0.46 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.38. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $178.85 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $183.61. Federal Agricultural Mortgage has a 52-week low of $137.16 and a 52-week high of $199.40.

Federal Agricultural Mortgage (NYSE:AGM) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, May 6th. The credit services provider reported $3.96 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.94 by $0.02. Federal Agricultural Mortgage had a return on equity of 22.01% and a net margin of 13.79%. The business had revenue of $403.63 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $92.22 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $3.56 earnings per share. On average, analysts anticipate that Federal Agricultural Mortgage will post 16.67 earnings per share for the current year.

Federal Agricultural Mortgage Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 28th. Investors of record on Friday, June 14th were paid a dividend of $1.40 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 14th. This represents a $5.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.09%. Federal Agricultural Mortgage’s payout ratio is 34.15%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $212.00 price target (down from $225.00) on shares of Federal Agricultural Mortgage in a research report on Wednesday, May 8th.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Federal Agricultural Mortgage

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Principal Securities Inc. bought a new stake in Federal Agricultural Mortgage in the fourth quarter worth $34,000. Sunbelt Securities Inc. boosted its position in shares of Federal Agricultural Mortgage by 194.2% during the first quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. now owns 203 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $40,000 after buying an additional 134 shares during the period. Federated Hermes Inc. grew its stake in shares of Federal Agricultural Mortgage by 464.7% during the third quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 288 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $44,000 after buying an additional 237 shares during the last quarter. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Federal Agricultural Mortgage by 304.6% in the fourth quarter. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 263 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $50,000 after buying an additional 198 shares during the period. Finally, Parkside Financial Bank & Trust boosted its holdings in Federal Agricultural Mortgage by 9.5% during the 4th quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 702 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $134,000 after acquiring an additional 61 shares during the period. 68.03% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Federal Agricultural Mortgage

Federal Agricultural Mortgage Corporation provides a secondary market for various loans made to borrowers in the United States. It operates through four segments: Corporate AgFinance, Farm & Ranch, Rural Utilities, and Renewable Energy. The company's Agricultural Finance line of business engages in purchasing and retaining eligible loans and securities; guaranteeing the payment of principal and interest on securities that represent interests in or obligations secured by pools of eligible loans; servicing eligible loans; and issuing LTSPCs for eligible loans.