Assured Guaranty (NYSE:AGO - Get Free Report) was downgraded by investment analysts at StockNews.com from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note issued to investors on Thursday.
AGO has been the topic of several other research reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised shares of Assured Guaranty from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and raised their price objective for the company from $87.00 to $92.00 in a research report on Tuesday, July 9th. UBS Group reduced their price objective on Assured Guaranty from $102.00 to $84.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, August 9th. Finally, Roth Mkm reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $110.00 price target on shares of Assured Guaranty in a research note on Tuesday, July 9th.
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Assured Guaranty Trading Up 1.1 %
AGO stock traded up $0.84 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $79.70. The stock had a trading volume of 255,641 shares, compared to its average volume of 389,100. The company's 50-day moving average price is $78.35 and its 200 day moving average price is $80.76. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30, a current ratio of 0.97 and a quick ratio of 0.97. The firm has a market cap of $4.34 billion, a PE ratio of 6.15 and a beta of 1.11. Assured Guaranty has a 12-month low of $58.14 and a 12-month high of $96.60.
Assured Guaranty (NYSE:AGO - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 7th. The financial services provider reported $1.44 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.39 by $0.05. Assured Guaranty had a net margin of 57.45% and a return on equity of 12.48%. The company had revenue of $202.00 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $193.05 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.60 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 43.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts predict that Assured Guaranty will post 6.45 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.
Insiders Place Their Bets
In related news, CEO Dominic Frederico sold 40,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $78.12, for a total value of $3,124,800.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 1,410,824 shares of the company's stock, valued at $110,213,570.88. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 5.10% of the company's stock.
Hedge Funds Weigh In On Assured Guaranty
Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. California Public Employees Retirement System lifted its holdings in shares of Assured Guaranty by 2.0% in the fourth quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System now owns 108,550 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $8,123,000 after buying an additional 2,159 shares in the last quarter. Truist Financial Corp acquired a new stake in Assured Guaranty during the fourth quarter valued at $428,000. Russell Investments Group Ltd. increased its position in shares of Assured Guaranty by 14.1% during the fourth quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 76,279 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $5,708,000 after purchasing an additional 9,452 shares in the last quarter. Natixis Advisors L.P. increased its position in Assured Guaranty by 13.6% during the fourth quarter. Natixis Advisors L.P. now owns 22,402 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,676,000 after purchasing an additional 2,689 shares during the last quarter. Finally, M&T Bank Corp boosted its stake in Assured Guaranty by 1.9% during the fourth quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 25,249 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,889,000 after buying an additional 478 shares during the period. 92.22% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.
About Assured Guaranty
(
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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.
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