Louisiana State Employees Retirement System Takes Position in American Equity Investment Life Holding (NYSE:AEL)

Louisiana State Employees Retirement System purchased a new stake in American Equity Investment Life Holding (NYSE:AEL) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm purchased 31,200 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $1,741,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in AEL. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company increased its position in shares of American Equity Investment Life by 5,296.0% in the third quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 1,669,263 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $89,539,000 after buying an additional 1,638,328 shares in the last quarter. Soros Fund Management LLC purchased a new stake in American Equity Investment Life during the 3rd quarter worth about $71,649,000. Alpine Associates Management Inc. purchased a new stake in American Equity Investment Life during the 3rd quarter worth about $51,012,000. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in American Equity Investment Life during the 4th quarter worth about $35,057,000. Finally, Picton Mahoney Asset Management purchased a new stake in American Equity Investment Life during the 3rd quarter worth about $26,850,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.98% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently commented on AEL shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price objective on American Equity Investment Life from $55.00 to $56.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Friday, February 16th. StockNews.com started coverage on American Equity Investment Life in a research report on Monday, March 11th. They set a “hold” rating for the company. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, According to data from MarketBeat, American Equity Investment Life has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $52.50.

American Equity Investment Life Stock Down 0.2 %

Shares of NYSE:AEL opened at $55.14 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $55.71 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $55.06. The company has a current ratio of 0.34, a quick ratio of 0.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28. American Equity Investment Life Holding has a 12-month low of $36.69 and a 12-month high of $56.40. The firm has a market cap of $4.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.77 and a beta of 0.80.

American Equity Investment Life (NYSE:AEL) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 14th. The financial services provider reported $1.99 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.75 by $0.24. American Equity Investment Life had a return on equity of 25.15% and a net margin of 7.42%. The firm had revenue of $1.06 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $673.53 million. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.64 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 61.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts forecast that American Equity Investment Life Holding will post 7.11 EPS for the current year.

American Equity Investment Life Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed an annual dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 29th. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 15th will be paid a $0.38 dividend. This is a positive change from American Equity Investment Life’s previous annual dividend of $0.02. This represents a dividend yield of 0.68%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 12th. American Equity Investment Life’s payout ratio is currently 17.76%.

American Equity Investment Life Company Profile

American Equity Investment Life Holding Company, through its subsidiaries, provides life insurance products in the United States. The company issues fixed index and rate annuities, as well as single premium immediate annuities. It markets its products through independent agents, including independent marketing organizations, broker/dealers, banks, and registered investment advisors.