UBS Group AG Trims Stock Holdings in MGIC Investment Corporation $MTG

UBS Group AG lessened its position in shares of MGIC Investment Corporation (NYSE:MTG) by 15.4% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 1,447,994 shares of the insurance provider’s stock after selling 263,459 shares during the quarter. UBS Group AG’s holdings in MGIC Investment were worth $42,310,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of MTG. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. purchased a new stake in MGIC Investment in the third quarter valued at approximately $28,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of MGIC Investment by 61.1% in the 3rd quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. now owns 1,041 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 395 shares during the last quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of MGIC Investment in the fourth quarter worth $36,000. Root Financial Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of MGIC Investment during the third quarter worth $38,000. Finally, Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. lifted its position in MGIC Investment by 58.0% during the third quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. now owns 1,365 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 501 shares during the period. 95.58% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Paula C. Maggio sold 20,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $27.51, for a total transaction of $550,200.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 114,689 shares in the company, valued at $3,155,094.39. This trade represents a 14.85% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Timothy J. Mattke sold 139,202 shares of MGIC Investment stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $26.49, for a total transaction of $3,687,460.98. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 1,118,005 shares in the company, valued at $29,615,952.45. This represents a 11.07% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold 170,133 shares of company stock worth $4,524,600 over the last three months. 1.34% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MTG has been the topic of several analyst reports. UBS Group cut their price target on MGIC Investment from $29.50 to $28.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, March 12th. Barclays dropped their target price on MGIC Investment from $29.00 to $28.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 1st. Weiss Ratings cut MGIC Investment from a “buy (a-)” rating to a “buy (b+)” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 5th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price objective on shares of MGIC Investment from $28.00 to $29.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, April 10th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $28.25.

MGIC Investment Trading Up 0.7%

Shares of MGIC Investment stock opened at $26.44 on Thursday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $26.87 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $27.48. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a current ratio of 1.14. MGIC Investment Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $24.77 and a fifty-two week high of $29.97. The company has a market cap of $5.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.39, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.60 and a beta of 0.71.

MGIC Investment (NYSE:MTG) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The insurance provider reported $0.76 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.73 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $297.08 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $303.12 million. MGIC Investment had a return on equity of 14.01% and a net margin of 59.63%.The company’s quarterly revenue was down 3.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.75 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that MGIC Investment Corporation will post 3.07 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

MGIC Investment announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock buyback plan on Thursday, April 23rd that authorizes the company to repurchase $750.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the insurance provider to reacquire up to 12.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

MGIC Investment Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 21st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, May 6th will be issued a $0.15 dividend. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, May 6th. MGIC Investment’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 19.05%.

About MGIC Investment

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.