Zacks Investment Management Sells 4,138 Shares of MGIC Investment Co. (NYSE:MTG)

Zacks Investment Management lessened its holdings in shares of MGIC Investment Co. (NYSE:MTG) by 4.3% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 91,433 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 4,138 shares during the period. Zacks Investment Management’s holdings in MGIC Investment were worth $2,168,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of MTG. Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of MGIC Investment by 6.5% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 1,621,838 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $41,836,000 after buying an additional 98,369 shares during the period. Ritholtz Wealth Management increased its holdings in MGIC Investment by 13.4% during the 4th quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management now owns 91,690 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $2,174,000 after purchasing an additional 10,864 shares in the last quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC raised its stake in shares of MGIC Investment by 33.5% in the 4th quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 40,398 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $958,000 after purchasing an additional 10,130 shares during the period. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of MGIC Investment by 311.0% in the fourth quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 66,493 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $1,575,000 after purchasing an additional 50,316 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Empowered Funds LLC acquired a new position in shares of MGIC Investment during the fourth quarter worth about $1,166,000. 95.58% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MTG has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Compass Point reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $27.00 price target (up previously from $24.00) on shares of MGIC Investment in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Barclays increased their target price on shares of MGIC Investment from $25.00 to $26.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of MGIC Investment from $25.00 to $26.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price objective on MGIC Investment from $28.00 to $26.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, MGIC Investment currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $26.50.

MGIC Investment Stock Up 0.8 %

MGIC Investment stock opened at $24.03 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12, a current ratio of 0.48 and a quick ratio of 1.25. The company’s 50-day moving average is $23.90 and its 200-day moving average is $24.51. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.83 billion, a PE ratio of 8.28 and a beta of 0.93. MGIC Investment Co. has a fifty-two week low of $19.57 and a fifty-two week high of $26.56.

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

MGIC Investment Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 5th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th were issued a dividend of $0.13 per share. This represents a $0.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.16%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 18th. MGIC Investment’s dividend payout ratio is 17.93%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other MGIC Investment news, CAO Julie K. Sperber sold 4,600 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $24.55, for a total transaction of $112,930.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 75,070 shares in the company, valued at $1,842,968.50. This trade represents a 5.77 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Company insiders own 1.41% of the company’s stock.

About MGIC Investment

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.