HighTower Advisors LLC Raises Holdings in MGIC Investment Co. (NYSE:MTG)

HighTower Advisors LLC increased its position in MGIC Investment Co. (NYSE:MTG) by 14.6% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 39,688 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 5,065 shares during the period. HighTower Advisors LLC’s holdings in MGIC Investment were worth $941,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in 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 acquiring an additional 98,369 shares during the period. Vestcor Inc boosted its stake in MGIC Investment by 559.3% during the 3rd quarter. Vestcor Inc now owns 60,094 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $1,538,000 after purchasing an additional 50,979 shares during the period. Ritholtz Wealth Management grew its position 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 during the last quarter. Hancock Whitney Corp acquired a new position in MGIC Investment in the third quarter valued at $777,000. Finally, Janney Montgomery Scott LLC raised its holdings in shares of MGIC Investment by 33.5% in the fourth quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 40,398 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $958,000 after buying an additional 10,130 shares during the last quarter. 95.58% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

MGIC Investment Stock Up 1.8 %

MTG stock opened at $24.73 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 0.48, a quick ratio of 1.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $24.33 and its 200 day moving average price is $24.67. MGIC Investment Co. has a 52 week low of $19.26 and a 52 week high of $26.56. The company has a market cap of $6.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.53 and a beta of 1.28.

MGIC Investment (NYSE:MTG) last released 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%. On average, research analysts expect that MGIC Investment Co. will post 2.71 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

MGIC Investment Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 5th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th were given a $0.13 dividend. This represents a $0.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.10%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 18th. MGIC Investment’s dividend payout ratio is currently 17.93%.

Insider Transactions at MGIC Investment

In other MGIC Investment news, CAO Julie K. Sperber sold 4,600 shares of MGIC Investment stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 75,070 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,842,968.50. The trade was a 5.77 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Corporate insiders own 1.05% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price target on MGIC Investment from $29.00 to $28.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Barclays upped their price target on MGIC Investment from $25.00 to $26.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. Compass Point reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $27.00 price objective (up from $24.00) on shares of MGIC Investment in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Bank of America downgraded shares of MGIC Investment from a “buy” rating to an “underperform” rating and cut their price objective for the stock from $26.00 to $25.00 in a research report on Monday, December 9th. Finally, UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of MGIC Investment from $25.00 to $26.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, MGIC Investment currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $26.75.

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.