Corteva (NYSE:CTVA) Sets New 1-Year High on Strong Earnings

Shares of Corteva, Inc. (NYSE:CTVA) reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Thursday following a better than expected earnings announcement. The company traded as high as $66.50 and last traded at $65.98, with a volume of 2264471 shares. The stock had previously closed at $62.48.

The company reported $1.13 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.88 by $0.25. Corteva had a net margin of 5.36% and a return on equity of 7.19%. The company had revenue of $4.42 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.56 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.89 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.7% on a year-over-year basis.

Corteva Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 2nd will be given a dividend of $0.17 per share. This represents a $0.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.00%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 2nd. Corteva’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 41.46%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on CTVA. Oppenheimer reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $75.00 price target (up previously from $72.00) on shares of Corteva in a research note on Friday. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on shares of Corteva from $65.00 to $71.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday. The Goldman Sachs Group assumed coverage on shares of Corteva in a research report on Thursday, March 13th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $71.00 price target for the company. Bank of America lifted their price objective on shares of Corteva from $69.00 to $73.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Finally, Barclays raised their target price on Corteva from $62.00 to $64.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Corteva presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $69.64.

Insider Transactions at Corteva

In related news, insider Brian Titus sold 26,560 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $63.74, for a total value of $1,692,934.40. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 11,347 shares in the company, valued at approximately $723,257.78. The trade was a 70.07 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 0.14% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Corteva

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of CTVA. Flagship Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in Corteva in the 4th quarter worth $25,000. Noble Wealth Management PBC acquired a new stake in shares of Corteva in the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. Hager Investment Management Services LLC bought a new position in shares of Corteva in the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. Pinney & Scofield Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Corteva during the 4th quarter worth about $27,000. Finally, LGT Financial Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Corteva during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Institutional investors own 81.54% of the company’s stock.

Corteva Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08, a quick ratio of 0.93 and a current ratio of 1.45. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $60.87 and a two-hundred day moving average of $60.74. The stock has a market cap of $46.24 billion, a P/E ratio of 52.48, a P/E/G ratio of 1.68 and a beta of 0.72.

Corteva Company Profile

Corteva, Inc operates in the agriculture business. It operates through two segments, Seed and Crop Protection. The Seed segment develops and supplies advanced germplasm and traits that produce optimum yield for farms. It offers trait technologies that enhance resistance to weather, disease, insects, and herbicides used to control weeds, as well as food and nutritional characteristics.