Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC Sells 27,907 Shares of MGIC Investment Corporation $MTG

Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC decreased its holdings in shares of MGIC Investment Corporation (NYSE:MTG) by 48.2% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 29,938 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 27,907 shares during the period. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC’s holdings in MGIC Investment were worth $786,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MTG. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of MGIC Investment in the 4th quarter worth approximately $96,248,000. AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in MGIC Investment by 92.4% in the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 6,333,091 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $176,313,000 after buying an additional 3,041,446 shares in the last quarter. Arbejdsmarkedets Tillaegspension acquired a new stake in MGIC Investment in the 4th quarter valued at $24,456,000. Jane Street Group LLC grew its position in MGIC Investment by 71.2% in the fourth quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 1,739,877 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $50,839,000 after acquiring an additional 723,480 shares during the period. Finally, Caisse de depot et placement du Quebec grew its position in MGIC Investment by 20.4% in the third quarter. Caisse de depot et placement du Quebec now owns 3,943,965 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $111,890,000 after acquiring an additional 667,876 shares during the period. 95.58% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Paula C. Maggio sold 20,937 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $25.55, for a total transaction of $534,940.35. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 169,620 shares in the company, valued at $4,333,791. This represents a 10.99% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, COO Salvatore A. Miosi sold 30,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $25.38, for a total transaction of $761,400.00. Following the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 560,951 shares in the company, valued at approximately $14,236,936.38. This represents a 5.08% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Company insiders own 1.34% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have issued reports on MTG. Weiss Ratings raised MGIC Investment from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b+)” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 7th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on shares of MGIC Investment from $28.00 to $29.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, April 10th. Barclays dropped their target price on shares of MGIC Investment from $29.00 to $28.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada began coverage on shares of MGIC Investment in a report on Friday, May 22nd. They set a “sector perform” rating and a $28.00 price target for the company. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, MGIC Investment currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $28.25.

MGIC Investment Stock Up 0.7%

NYSE MTG opened at $29.46 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $6.23 billion, a PE ratio of 9.35, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.03 and a beta of 0.67. MGIC Investment Corporation has a one year low of $24.69 and a one year high of $29.97. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $26.68 and its 200 day simple moving average is $26.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13, a current ratio of 1.14 and a quick ratio of 1.14.

MGIC Investment (NYSE:MTG) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 29th. The insurance provider reported $0.76 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.73 by $0.03. MGIC Investment had a return on equity of 14.01% and a net margin of 59.63%.The firm had revenue of $297.08 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $303.12 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.75 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 3.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that MGIC Investment Corporation will post 3.05 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

MGIC Investment declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback program on Thursday, April 23rd that authorizes the company to buyback $750.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the insurance provider to repurchase up to 12.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are typically a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

MGIC Investment Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 21st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 6th were paid a $0.15 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, May 6th. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.0%. MGIC Investment’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 19.05%.

MGIC Investment Company Profile

MGIC Investment Corporation (NYSE: MTG) is a leading provider of private mortgage insurance in the United States. Established in 1957 as the nation’s first private mortgage insurer, MGIC helps lenders manage credit risk and facilitates homeownership by protecting mortgage loans against default. Headquartered in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, the company operates through its principal subsidiary, Mortgage Guaranty Insurance Corporation, and maintains relationships with a broad network of originators and servicers nationwide.

The company’s primary business activity involves issuing mortgage insurance policies that enable borrowers to purchase homes with down payments below traditional lending thresholds.