Stephens Begins Coverage on Archer-Daniels-Midland (NYSE:ADM)

Stephens assumed coverage on shares of Archer-Daniels-Midland (NYSE:ADM) in a report issued on Wednesday, MarketBeat Ratings reports. The brokerage issued an equal weight rating and a $55.00 price target on the stock.

Several other analysts have also commented on the stock. UBS Group lifted their price objective on shares of Archer-Daniels-Midland from $60.00 to $64.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, September 9th. BMO Capital Markets lowered their price target on shares of Archer-Daniels-Midland from $55.00 to $51.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on Archer-Daniels-Midland from $57.00 to $52.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, November 12th. Barclays dropped their price target on Archer-Daniels-Midland from $60.00 to $56.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. Finally, Citigroup lifted their price objective on Archer-Daniels-Midland from $51.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and fifteen have assigned a hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $60.62.

Archer-Daniels-Midland Stock Down 1.3 %

Shares of NYSE:ADM opened at $52.41 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $25.08 billion, a PE ratio of 14.91 and a beta of 0.72. Archer-Daniels-Midland has a 1 year low of $48.92 and a 1 year high of $77.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34, a current ratio of 1.40 and a quick ratio of 0.84. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $54.64 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $58.72.

Archer-Daniels-Midland announced that its board has authorized a stock repurchase program on Wednesday, December 11th that allows the company to repurchase 100,000,000 shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to repurchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are usually a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Archer-Daniels-Midland Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 12th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, November 21st were paid a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, November 21st. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.82%. Archer-Daniels-Midland’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 57.14%.

Institutional Trading of Archer-Daniels-Midland

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. State Street Corp lifted its stake in shares of Archer-Daniels-Midland by 3.3% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 32,045,672 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,914,408,000 after acquiring an additional 1,018,256 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its position in Archer-Daniels-Midland by 41.5% in the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 19,430,111 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,160,755,000 after purchasing an additional 5,702,451 shares during the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Archer-Daniels-Midland by 6.4% during the third quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 8,086,446 shares of the company’s stock valued at $483,084,000 after purchasing an additional 489,554 shares during the period. FMR LLC grew its holdings in shares of Archer-Daniels-Midland by 33.9% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 3,979,867 shares of the company’s stock worth $237,757,000 after purchasing an additional 1,007,494 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Archer-Daniels-Midland by 1.8% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,607,843 shares of the company’s stock worth $215,533,000 after buying an additional 63,883 shares during the period. 78.28% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Archer-Daniels-Midland Company Profile

Archer-Daniels-Midland Company engages in the procurement, transportation, storage, processing, and merchandising of agricultural commodities, ingredients, flavors, and solutions in the United States, Switzerland, the Cayman Islands, Brazil, Mexico, Canada, the United Kingdom, and internationally. It operates in three segments: Ag Services and Oilseeds, Carbohydrate Solutions, and Nutrition.