Investors Buy High Volume of AGNC Investment Put Options (NASDAQ:AGNC)

AGNC Investment Corp. (NASDAQ:AGNC) was the target of unusually large options trading activity on Wednesday. Investors purchased 61,469 put options on the company. This is an increase of approximately 64% compared to the typical daily volume of 37,568 put options.

AGNC Investment Trading Up 0.8%

NASDAQ AGNC opened at $11.79 on Friday. AGNC Investment has a 52 week low of $7.85 and a 52 week high of $11.93. 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 stock’s 50 day moving average price is $10.78 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $10.17. The stock has a market capitalization of $12.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.60 and a beta of 1.36.

AGNC Investment (NASDAQ:AGNC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, October 20th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.35 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.38 by ($0.03). AGNC Investment had a net margin of 24.40% and a return on equity of 18.84%. The company had revenue of $836.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $466.39 million. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.43 earnings per share. As a group, analysts anticipate that AGNC Investment will post 1.61 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AGNC Investment Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a monthly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, February 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 30th will be issued a dividend of $0.12 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 30th. This represents a c) annualized dividend and a yield of 12.2%. AGNC Investment’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 214.93%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Peter J. Federico sold 45,798 shares of AGNC Investment stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $10.27, for a total transaction of $470,345.46. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 1,557,401 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $15,994,508.27. This trade represents a 2.86% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.42% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of AGNC Investment

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of AGNC. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its position in AGNC Investment by 51.9% during the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 64,100 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $614,000 after acquiring an additional 21,897 shares during the period. NewEdge Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of AGNC Investment by 38.4% during the 1st quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 24,941 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $239,000 after purchasing an additional 6,923 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC increased its holdings in shares of AGNC Investment by 16.0% during the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 2,811,782 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $26,937,000 after purchasing an additional 387,524 shares during the period. Voya Investment Management LLC raised its position in shares of AGNC Investment by 9.2% in the first quarter. Voya Investment Management LLC now owns 107,973 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $1,034,000 after buying an additional 9,052 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC boosted its stake in shares of AGNC Investment by 50.0% in the second quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 176,604 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $1,658,000 after buying an additional 58,841 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 38.28% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have commented on the stock. Wall Street Zen cut shares of AGNC Investment from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Saturday, December 27th. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of AGNC Investment in a report on Monday, December 29th. Piper Sandler boosted their target price on AGNC Investment from $11.00 to $11.50 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 15th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price 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. Finally, BTIG Research cut shares of AGNC Investment from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 6th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $10.41.

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.