Sei Investments Co. increased its stake in Assured Guaranty Ltd. (NYSE:AGO – Free Report) by 55.0% in the first quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 40,487 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 14,361 shares during the quarter. Sei Investments Co.’s holdings in Assured Guaranty were worth $3,299,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.
Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Royal Bank of Canada grew its position in Assured Guaranty by 61.6% during the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 59,010 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $5,198,000 after buying an additional 22,486 shares during the period. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC boosted its stake in shares of Assured Guaranty by 7.3% during the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 238,638 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $21,024,000 after acquiring an additional 16,235 shares in the last quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Assured Guaranty by 8.9% during the 2nd quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. now owns 3,600 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $322,000 after acquiring an additional 295 shares in the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Assured Guaranty by 99.5% in the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 868 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $76,000 after acquiring an additional 433 shares during the period. Finally, Marshall Wace LLP acquired a new stake in shares of Assured Guaranty in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $553,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.22% of the company’s stock.
Key Headlines Impacting Assured Guaranty
Here are the key news stories impacting Assured Guaranty this week:
- Positive Sentiment: Assured Guaranty declared a quarterly dividend of $0.38 per share, payable September 3 to shareholders of record August 20. The dividend represents an annualized yield of approximately 1.8%, providing ongoing shareholder income. Assured Guaranty dividend announcement
- Neutral Sentiment: The company posted updated investor materials and disclosures on August 7. No specific financial change or new guidance was identified in the announcement, so the immediate stock impact appears limited. Updated investor materials and disclosures
- Negative Sentiment: Second-quarter earnings were $1.23 per share, below consensus estimates ranging from $1.51 to $1.66. Although EPS increased from $1.01 a year earlier, the earnings miss is likely weighing on investor sentiment. Assured Guaranty Q2 earnings miss
- Negative Sentiment: Quarterly revenue was $195 million, below the approximately $205 million consensus estimate and down 30.6% year over year. The revenue shortfall, combined with the EPS miss, is the primary catalyst behind the stock’s decline. Assured Guaranty Q2 earnings snapshot Assured Guaranty revenue estimate miss
Assured Guaranty Price Performance
Assured Guaranty (NYSE:AGO – Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, June 30th. The financial services provider reported $1.23 earnings per share for the quarter. Assured Guaranty had a return on equity of 7.07% and a net margin of 37.34%.The company had revenue of $195.00 million during the quarter. On average, analysts forecast that Assured Guaranty Ltd. will post 7.08 EPS for the current fiscal year.
Assured Guaranty Announces Dividend
The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 3rd. Investors of record on Thursday, August 20th will be paid a $0.38 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 20th. This represents a $1.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.0%. Assured Guaranty’s payout ratio is presently 17.45%.
Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades
AGO has been the subject of several research reports. Weiss Ratings cut Assured Guaranty from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Monday. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their price target on Assured Guaranty from $103.00 to $101.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, July 17th. Roth Capital cut shares of Assured Guaranty from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $80.00 price objective on the stock. in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Assured Guaranty from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Saturday. Finally, UBS Group upgraded shares of Assured Guaranty from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $94.00 target price for the company in a research report on Monday, May 18th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $91.67.
View Our Latest Analysis on Assured Guaranty
Insider Buying and Selling at Assured Guaranty
In other Assured Guaranty news, COO Robert Bailenson sold 50,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $78.62, for a total value of $3,931,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 256,251 shares in the company, valued at approximately $20,146,453.62. This represents a 16.33% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Lorin Radtke sold 1,047 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $74.32, for a total transaction of $77,813.04. Following the sale, the director directly owned 9,307 shares in the company, valued at $691,696.24. This represents a 10.11% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 5.70% of the stock is owned by insiders.
About Assured Guaranty
Assured Guaranty Ltd is a Bermuda-domiciled provider of financial guaranty insurance and reinsurance products serving public finance, infrastructure and structured finance markets. The company’s primary business activity is credit enhancement, whereby it guarantees the timely payment of principal and interest on debt obligations issued by municipal and infrastructure entities. By combining rigorous risk assessment with active portfolio management, Assured Guaranty helps issuers access capital at more attractive rates while protecting investors against credit events.
In its public finance segment, the company underwrites municipal bond insurance for state and local governments, public-private partnerships and essential infrastructure projects.
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