Andersons (NASDAQ:ANDE) Hits New 1-Year High – Here’s Why

The Andersons, Inc. (NASDAQ:ANDE)’s stock price reached a new 52-week high during trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $76.10 and last traded at $75.7380, with a volume of 176123 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $73.07.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have commented on ANDE. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Andersons in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Andersons from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, March 14th. Benchmark reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Andersons in a research report on Wednesday, February 18th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on shares of Andersons from $65.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 19th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Andersons has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $68.33.

Andersons Price Performance

The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $69.33 and its 200-day moving average price is $58.30. The company has a market capitalization of $2.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.04 and a beta of 0.68. The company has a quick ratio of 0.60, a current ratio of 1.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43.

Andersons (NASDAQ:ANDE) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 17th. The basic materials company reported $2.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.56 by $0.48. The company had revenue of $2.54 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.69 billion. Andersons had a net margin of 0.87% and a return on equity of 7.76%. Andersons’s quarterly revenue was down 18.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.31 earnings per share.

Andersons Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 22nd. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 1st will be paid a dividend of $0.20 per share. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 1st. Andersons’s payout ratio is 28.57%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Andersons

In related news, VP Anne G. Rex sold 2,624 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $65.16, for a total transaction of $170,979.84. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president directly owned 23,829 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,552,697.64. The trade was a 9.92% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director John T. Stout, Jr. sold 2,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.30, for a total transaction of $175,750.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 23,441 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,647,902.30. This trade represents a 9.64% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last three months, insiders sold 44,299 shares of company stock valued at $3,166,721. 4.30% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Andersons

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Uniplan Investment Counsel Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Andersons during the fourth quarter worth approximately $25,000. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC bought a new stake in Andersons in the third quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Optima Capital LLC bought a new stake in Andersons in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Larson Financial Group LLC increased its stake in Andersons by 33,600.0% in the third quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 1,011 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 1,008 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. increased its stake in Andersons by 95.2% in the fourth quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 820 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $44,000 after purchasing an additional 400 shares in the last quarter. 87.06% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Andersons Company Profile

The Andersons, Inc operates as a diversified agriculture company offering a broad range of products and services to farmers, retailers and industrial customers. Through its Grain Group, the company purchases, stores, merchandises and transports corn, soybeans and other commodities, while its Renewables Group produces ethanol and distillers grains at multiple plants in the U.S. The Rail Group provides locomotive leasing, railcar repair and related maintenance services, and the Horticulture Group supplies turf, specialty and horticultural products to landscaping professionals and consumer lawn and garden retailers.

Founded in 1947 and headquartered in Maumee, Ohio, The Andersons has grown from a regional grain elevator operator into an integrated agribusiness platform.