Archer-Daniels-Midland (NYSE:ADM) Sets New 1-Year Low – Time to Sell?

Archer-Daniels-Midland Company (NYSE:ADM)’s stock price reached a new 52-week low during trading on Thursday . The company traded as low as $44.96 and last traded at $45.04, with a volume of 341289 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $45.22.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the company. Barclays dropped their price target on Archer-Daniels-Midland from $56.00 to $50.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Bank of America cut their target price on shares of Archer-Daniels-Midland from $54.00 to $48.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday. BMO Capital Markets decreased their price target on shares of Archer-Daniels-Midland from $51.00 to $49.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. Stephens dropped their price objective on shares of Archer-Daniels-Midland from $55.00 to $52.00 in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Finally, Citigroup increased their price target on shares of Archer-Daniels-Midland from $51.00 to $55.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and seven have issued a hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $55.11.

Archer-Daniels-Midland Stock Performance

The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $50.29 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $55.01. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37, a current ratio of 5.44 and a quick ratio of 0.84. The firm has a market capitalization of $21.75 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.58 and a beta of 0.72.

Archer-Daniels-Midland (NYSE:ADM) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported $1.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.07 by $0.07. Archer-Daniels-Midland had a net margin of 2.10% and a return on equity of 10.44%. The company had revenue of $21.50 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $22.77 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.36 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 6.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts forecast that Archer-Daniels-Midland Company will post 4.53 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Archer-Daniels-Midland Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 11th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th will be issued a $0.51 dividend. This represents a $2.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.49%. This is a boost from Archer-Daniels-Midland’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, February 18th. Archer-Daniels-Midland’s dividend payout ratio is currently 55.40%.

Archer-Daniels-Midland declared that its Board of Directors has approved a stock repurchase plan on Wednesday, December 11th that permits the company to buyback 100,000,000 outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to reacquire shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are typically an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Institutional Trading of Archer-Daniels-Midland

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ADM. Lake Street Advisors Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of Archer-Daniels-Midland by 4.8% in the 3rd quarter. Lake Street Advisors Group LLC now owns 4,015 shares of the company’s stock valued at $240,000 after purchasing an additional 183 shares in the last quarter. OLD National Bancorp IN raised its stake in Archer-Daniels-Midland by 0.9% in the third quarter. OLD National Bancorp IN now owns 20,648 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,234,000 after buying an additional 189 shares in the last quarter. NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC lifted its holdings in Archer-Daniels-Midland by 4.1% during the third quarter. NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC now owns 5,125 shares of the company’s stock worth $306,000 after buying an additional 201 shares during the period. West Financial Advisors LLC boosted its position in Archer-Daniels-Midland by 10.1% during the 4th quarter. West Financial Advisors LLC now owns 2,201 shares of the company’s stock valued at $111,000 after acquiring an additional 201 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Hantz Financial Services Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Archer-Daniels-Midland by 10.8% in the 4th quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 2,152 shares of the company’s stock valued at $109,000 after acquiring an additional 210 shares during the period. 78.28% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Archer-Daniels-Midland

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.