There’s a lot to be optimistic about in the Financial sector as 3 analysts just weighed in on MGIC Investment (MTG), Main Street Capital (MAIN) and Hospitality Properties (HPT) with bullish sentiments.
MGIC Investment (MTG)
In a report released yesterday, Randy Binner from B.Riley FBR reiterated a Buy rating on MGIC Investment, with a price target of $16. The company’s shares opened today at $11.71.
Binner commented:
“MTG reported 4Q18 operating EPS of $0.42, ahead of B. Riley FBR/consensus’ estimate of $0.38/ $0.39. The beat, versus our model, came primarily from the loss ratio: 11.3%, versus our 16.0% estimate. Net premiums earned were $246M, a beat versus our $239M estimate. New insurance written of $12.2B was below our expectation of $13.6B. The premium yield was above plan, at 47 bps versus our 46 bps. Expenses came in favorable at 20.3% compared to our 21.0% estimate. Overall, we view this as a favorable result for MTG and expect this trend to continue to the other PMIs like NMIH (Buy, $23 PT) and RDN (Neutral, $24 PT).”
According to TipRanks.com, Binner is a 5-star analyst with an average return of 11.5% and a 63.3% success rate. Binner covers the Financial sector, focusing on stocks such as American Equity Investment Life, American International Group, and Health Insurance Innovations.
Currently, the analyst consensus on MGIC Investment is a Moderate Buy with an average price target of $16.
See today’s analyst top recommended stocks >>
Main Street Capital (MAIN)
In a report released yesterday, Timothy P. Hayes from B.Riley FBR reiterated a Buy rating on Main Street Capital, with a price target of $42. The company’s shares opened today at $36.94.
Hayes commented:
“We reiterate our Buy rating and $42 price target on shares of Main Street Capital Corp. (MAIN) following the announcement of preliminary 4Q18 results that are expected to come in ahead of B. Riley FBR and consensus estimates, but include a modest NAV decline. MAIN expects to achieve 4Q18 NII between $0.68/share and $0.69/share, beating our $0.63/share estimate and the consensus estimate of $0.62/share. MAIN also expects to report NAV per share in the range of $24.04 to $24.14, implying a 1.1% to 1.5% sequential decline from 3Q18 NAV per share of $24. 69.”
According to TipRanks.com, Hayes is a 4-star analyst with an average return of 6.3% and a 68.2% success rate. Hayes covers the Financial sector, focusing on stocks such as Ready Capital Corporation, Saratoga Investment Corp, and Cherry Hill Mortgage.
Main Street Capital has an analyst consensus of Moderate Buy, with a price target consensus of $39.25.
Hospitality Properties (HPT)
B.Riley FBR analyst Bryan Maher reiterated a Buy rating on Hospitality Properties today. The company’s shares opened today at $26.32.
Maher wrote:
“On Wednesday evening (1/16), Hospitality Properties Trust (HPT) and TravelCenters of America (TA) announced that they had entered into an agreement, in which TA would acquire 20 travel centers from HPT for $308.2M. In addition, TA will begin paying back the deferred rent obligation accrued in 2009–2010 ($150.0M), which accrues no interest for HPT and is currently not due until 2024–2030, over the next 16 quarters at a discounted amount of $70.5M (effectively 16 payments of $4.4M). This has been an overhang on TA; and, in our view, many HPT investors assumed they would never see this rent payment—thus the “bird in hand” analogy. As a result of the sale of the travel centers, and the proceeds received, TA will see its annual rent paid to HPT reduced by $43.1M, offset by $17.6M in deferred rent payments.”
According to TipRanks.com, Maher is a 1-star analyst with an average return of -1.8% and a 48.0% success rate. Maher covers the Financial sector, focusing on stocks such as Industrial Logistics Properties Trust, Government Properties Income Trust, and Senior Housing Properties Trust.
Hospitality Properties has an analyst consensus of Moderate Buy, with a price target consensus of $28, representing a 6.4% upside. In a report issued on January 15, Stifel Nicolaus also maintained a Buy rating on the stock with a $28 price target.
TipRanks has tracked 36,000 company insiders and found that a few of them are better than others when it comes to timing their transactions. See which 3 stocks are most likely to make moves following their insider activities.
