Yahoo Finance

• Total Revenue: $362 million in 2024, up from $349 million in 2023.

• Core Earnings: $172 million for 2024, slightly exceeding the prior year record.

• Net Effective Spread: Improved by $12.6 million year-over-year, with a compression of 3 basis points to 115 basis points.

• Loan Purchase Volume: $7 billion in gross volume for 2024, with significant growth in farm and ranch and renewable energy loans.

• Renewable Energy Volume: Nearly $1.5 billion by year-end 2024, doubling annually since 2020.

• Broadband Infrastructure Growth: Increased by over $300 million or 60% year-over-year.

• Core Earnings Per Share: $15.64 per diluted share for 2024.

• Operating Expenses: Increased by 18% sequentially in Q4 2024.

• Efficiency Ratio: 30% for Q4 2024 and 28% for full year 2024.

• Return on Equity: 16% for the quarter.

• Dividend Increase: Quarterly common stock dividend increased by $0.10 to $1.50 per share, a 7% increase.

• Capital Position: $1.5 billion in capital, exceeding statutory requirements by $583 million or 64%.

• Tier One Capital Ratio: 14.2% as of December 30, 2024.

• Liquidity: 264 days of liquidity with approximately $1 billion in cash and short-term instruments.

• Warning! GuruFocus has detected 6 Warning Signs with AGM.

Release Date: February 21, 2025

For the complete transcript of the earnings call, please refer to the full earnings call transcript.

Positive Points

• Federal Agricultural Mortgage Corp (NYSE:AGM) reported record net effective spread and core earnings for 2024, driven by consistent loan growth and effective asset liability management.

• The company successfully closed two $300 million farm securitization transactions in 2024, marking the first time it completed two issuances in one year.

• AGM announced its 14th consecutive annual dividend increase, with a 7% rise in the quarterly common stock dividend starting in the first quarter of 2025.

• The company saw significant growth in its renewable energy and broadband infrastructure segments, with renewable energy volume nearly doubling each year since 2020.

• AGM maintained a strong capital position, exceeding statutory requirements by $583 million, and reported a 16% return on equity for the quarter.

Negative Points

• Operating expenses increased by 18% sequentially, largely due to higher licensing fees, infrastructure technology costs, and legal fees associated with new business segments.

• The net effective spread compressed by 3 basis points year-over-year to 115 basis points due to loans moving into non-accrual status and a volatile funding environment.

• Credit expenses were above historical levels, with an aggregate economic loss of $2.5 million related to a single agricultural storage and processing borrower.

• Substandard asset volume increased to $440.7 million, representing 1.5% of the total portfolio, up from 0.8% at the end of 2023.

• The allowance for losses increased by $3.4 million in the fourth quarter, primarily due to new volume in the infrastructure finance line of business and a downgraded renewable energy loan.