Virtu Financial LLC Invests $274,000 in Federal Agricultural Mortgage Co. (NYSE:AGM)

Virtu Financial LLC bought a new stake in shares of Federal Agricultural Mortgage Co. (NYSE:AGM - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm bought 1,393 shares of the credit services provider's stock, valued at approximately $274,000.

Other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans lifted its stake in shares of Federal Agricultural Mortgage by 1,589.4% in the 4th quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 356,001 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $70,114,000 after acquiring an additional 334,928 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in Federal Agricultural Mortgage in the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,914,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its position in Federal Agricultural Mortgage by 10.3% in the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 319,701 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $59,911,000 after purchasing an additional 29,917 shares during the last quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors boosted its stake in shares of Federal Agricultural Mortgage by 10.0% during the third quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 226,983 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $42,539,000 after purchasing an additional 20,603 shares during the period. Finally, Boston Partners grew its holdings in shares of Federal Agricultural Mortgage by 3.8% in the fourth quarter. Boston Partners now owns 415,716 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $81,813,000 after purchasing an additional 15,140 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 68.03% of the company's stock.

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Federal Agricultural Mortgage Trading Down 0.3 %

Shares of Federal Agricultural Mortgage stock traded down $0.63 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $186.88. 36,669 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 44,061. 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 firm has a market cap of $2.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.36, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 1.11. Federal Agricultural Mortgage Co. has a 1 year low of $169.17 and a 1 year high of $217.60. The stock's fifty day moving average is $197.50 and its 200 day moving average is $196.35.

Federal Agricultural Mortgage (NYSE:AGM - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, February 21st. The credit services provider reported $4.63 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $4.17 by $0.46. Federal Agricultural Mortgage had a return on equity of 19.43% and a net margin of 12.75%. The business had revenue of $101.26 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $92.81 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $4.10 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Federal Agricultural Mortgage Co. will post 17.6 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Federal Agricultural Mortgage Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th were issued a $1.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 14th. This represents a $6.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.21%. This is a boost from Federal Agricultural Mortgage's previous quarterly dividend of $1.40. Federal Agricultural Mortgage's payout ratio is 36.47%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Federal Agricultural Mortgage

In related news, CFO Aparna Ramesh sold 1,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $201.86, for a total transaction of $201,860.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 9,242 shares in the company, valued at $1,865,590.12. The trade was a 9.76 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Mitchell A. Johnson sold 2,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $205.21, for a total transaction of $513,025.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 8,644 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,773,835.24. The trade was a 22.43 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 2.58% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on shares of Federal Agricultural Mortgage from $205.00 to $230.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a report on Monday, February 24th.

About Federal Agricultural Mortgage

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.