MGIC Investment Co. (NYSE:MTG) Sees Large Growth in Short Interest

MGIC Investment Co. (NYSE:MTG) was the recipient of a large increase in short interest in February. As of February 28th, there was short interest totalling 11,660,000 shares, an increase of 17.8% from the February 13th total of 9,900,000 shares. Approximately 4.9% of the company’s stock are sold short. Based on an average trading volume of 1,710,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 6.8 days.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CAO Julie K. Sperber sold 4,600 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $24.55, for a total value of $112,930.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 75,070 shares in the company, valued at $1,842,968.50. This represents a 5.77 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Company insiders own 1.05% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of MGIC Investment

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of MTG. UMB Bank n.a. lifted its holdings in MGIC Investment by 131.9% during the 4th quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 1,649 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $39,000 after buying an additional 938 shares in the last quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in MGIC Investment by 102.1% in the fourth quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,817 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $43,000 after acquiring an additional 918 shares during the last quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC increased its position in MGIC Investment by 61.9% in the fourth quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 2,077 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $49,000 after purchasing an additional 794 shares during the period. Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in MGIC Investment during the 4th quarter worth about $54,000. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its position in MGIC Investment by 21.9% during the 4th quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 2,336 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $55,000 after purchasing an additional 419 shares during the period. 95.58% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

MGIC Investment Price Performance

Shares of MTG traded up $0.22 on Thursday, hitting $23.63. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 800,063 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,885,372. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $24.27 and a 200 day moving average price of $24.71. MGIC Investment has a fifty-two week low of $19.26 and a fifty-two week high of $26.56. The company has a market capitalization of $5.73 billion, a PE ratio of 8.15 and a beta of 1.28. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12, a current ratio of 0.48 and a quick ratio of 1.25.

MGIC Investment (NYSE:MTG) last announced its earnings results on Monday, February 3rd. The insurance provider reported $0.72 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.65 by $0.07. MGIC Investment had a return on equity of 14.86% and a net margin of 63.18%. On average, research analysts anticipate that MGIC Investment will post 2.71 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

MGIC Investment Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 5th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th were paid a $0.13 dividend. This represents a $0.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.20%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 18th. MGIC Investment’s dividend payout ratio is presently 17.93%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MTG has been the subject of several recent research reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their target price on shares of MGIC Investment from $29.00 to $28.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Compass Point restated a “neutral” rating and set a $27.00 target price (up from $24.00) on shares of MGIC Investment in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. Barclays increased their price objective on MGIC Investment from $25.00 to $26.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. UBS Group increased their price target on MGIC Investment from $25.00 to $26.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. Finally, Bank of America downgraded shares of MGIC Investment from a “buy” rating to an “underperform” rating and decreased their price objective for the stock from $26.00 to $25.00 in a report on Monday, December 9th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $26.75.

MGIC Investment Company Profile

MGIC Investment Corporation, through its subsidiaries, provides private mortgage insurance, other mortgage credit risk management solutions, and ancillary services to lenders and government sponsored entities in the United States, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and Guam. The company offers primary mortgage insurance that provides mortgage default protection on individual loans, as well as covers unpaid loan principal, delinquent interest, and various expenses associated with the default and subsequent foreclosure.