Franklin Resources Inc. Reduces Position in Assured Guaranty Ltd. (NYSE:AGO)

Franklin Resources Inc. reduced its stake in shares of Assured Guaranty Ltd. (NYSE:AGO - Free Report) by 7.1% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 454,175 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 34,476 shares during the quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. owned 0.89% of Assured Guaranty worth $40,880,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Proficio Capital Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Assured Guaranty during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $25,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Assured Guaranty by 46.3% in the 4th quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 471 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $42,000 after purchasing an additional 149 shares during the period. Venturi Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in Assured Guaranty by 100.6% in the 4th quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 684 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $62,000 after purchasing an additional 343 shares during the period. Heck Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Assured Guaranty during the fourth quarter worth approximately $97,000. Finally, Jones Financial Companies Lllp grew its holdings in Assured Guaranty by 1,794.9% in the fourth quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 1,497 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $135,000 after purchasing an additional 1,418 shares during the period. 92.22% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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Assured Guaranty Price Performance

Shares of AGO stock traded down $2.50 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $80.31. 73,765 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 357,374. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $87.65 and a two-hundred day moving average of $87.92. Assured Guaranty Ltd. has a fifty-two week low of $72.57 and a fifty-two week high of $96.50. The firm has a market cap of $4.01 billion, a P/E ratio of 6.24 and a beta of 0.84. The company has a quick ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29.

Assured Guaranty (NYSE:AGO - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 27th. The financial services provider reported $1.27 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.34 by ($0.07). Assured Guaranty had a net margin of 70.37% and a return on equity of 11.58%. The company had revenue of $199.00 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $199.56 million. Sell-side analysts forecast that Assured Guaranty Ltd. will post 7.3 EPS for the current year.

Assured Guaranty Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 19th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, March 5th were paid a $0.34 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 5th. This is a positive change from Assured Guaranty's previous quarterly dividend of $0.31. This represents a $1.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.69%. Assured Guaranty's payout ratio is currently 19.94%.

Assured Guaranty Company Profile

Assured Guaranty Ltd., together with its subsidiaries, provides credit protection products to public finance, infrastructure, and structured finance markets in the United States and internationally. It operates through two segments: Insurance and Asset Management. The company offers financial guaranty insurance that protects holders of debt instruments and other monetary obligations from defaults in scheduled payments.