VELA Investment Management LLC Acquires Shares of 8,754 Federal Agricultural Mortgage Co. (NYSE:AGM)

VELA Investment Management LLC bought a new position in Federal Agricultural Mortgage Co. (NYSE:AGM) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm bought 8,754 shares of the credit services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $1,724,000. VELA Investment Management LLC owned 0.08% of Federal Agricultural Mortgage as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust raised its holdings in Federal Agricultural Mortgage by 7.0% in the fourth quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 1,004 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $198,000 after purchasing an additional 66 shares during the period. Versor Investments LP acquired a new stake in Federal Agricultural Mortgage in the fourth quarter worth $355,000. Proficio Capital Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Federal Agricultural Mortgage in the fourth quarter worth $2,289,000. Denali Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Federal Agricultural Mortgage in the fourth quarter worth $2,226,000. Finally, Hudson Edge Investment Partners Inc. raised its holdings in Federal Agricultural Mortgage by 278.1% in the fourth quarter. Hudson Edge Investment Partners Inc. now owns 2,794 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $550,000 after purchasing an additional 2,055 shares during the period. 68.03% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their target price on shares of Federal Agricultural Mortgage from $205.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Monday.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Mitchell A. Johnson sold 2,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $205.21, for a total value of $513,025.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 8,644 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,773,835.24. This trade represents a 22.43 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Bradford T. Nordholm sold 5,073 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $213.37, for a total transaction of $1,082,426.01. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 41,104 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,770,360.48. This trade represents a 10.99 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 2.58% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Federal Agricultural Mortgage Trading Up 0.0 %

Shares of NYSE:AGM opened at $203.03 on Friday. Federal Agricultural Mortgage Co. has a 12 month low of $169.17 and a 12 month high of $217.60. The company has a quick ratio of 0.49, a current ratio of 0.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.58. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $196.75 and its 200 day simple moving average is $195.07. The firm has a market cap of $2.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.34, a PEG ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 1.08.

Federal Agricultural Mortgage (NYSE:AGM) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, February 21st. The credit services provider reported $4.63 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.17 by $0.46. Federal Agricultural Mortgage had a net margin of 12.75% and a return on equity of 19.43%. The business had revenue of $101.26 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $92.81 million. During the same period last year, the business posted $4.10 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts forecast that Federal Agricultural Mortgage Co. will post 17.6 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Federal Agricultural Mortgage Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th will be issued a dividend of $1.50 per share. This represents a $6.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.96%. This is a positive change from Federal Agricultural Mortgage’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.40. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. Federal Agricultural Mortgage’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 36.47%.

Federal Agricultural Mortgage Profile

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.