Hardman Johnston Global Advisors LLC Buys 141,955 Shares of Corteva, Inc. (NYSE:CTVA)

Hardman Johnston Global Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Corteva, Inc. (NYSE:CTVA) by 20.6% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 831,529 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 141,955 shares during the period. Corteva accounts for about 2.0% of Hardman Johnston Global Advisors LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 15th biggest position. Hardman Johnston Global Advisors LLC’s holdings in Corteva were worth $47,364,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd bought a new stake in Corteva during the 4th quarter valued at $1,900,000. Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA acquired a new position in shares of Corteva during the fourth quarter valued at about $357,000. Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund increased its position in shares of Corteva by 2,639.8% during the fourth quarter. Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund now owns 115,101 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,556,000 after acquiring an additional 110,900 shares in the last quarter. Howard Capital Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Corteva by 5.4% in the 4th quarter. Howard Capital Management Inc. now owns 5,149 shares of the company’s stock worth $293,000 after acquiring an additional 265 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Fisher Funds Management LTD bought a new position in Corteva in the 4th quarter valued at about $2,769,000. 81.54% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Corteva Stock Down 1.7 %

CTVA stock opened at $62.75 on Monday. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $60.81 and a 200-day moving average of $58.93. Corteva, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $50.01 and a fifty-two week high of $66.24. The company has a market capitalization of $43.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 48.64, a PEG ratio of 1.68 and a beta of 0.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08, a quick ratio of 0.93 and a current ratio of 1.45.

Corteva (NYSE:CTVA) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The company reported $0.32 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.34 by ($0.02). Corteva had a net margin of 5.36% and a return on equity of 7.19%. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Corteva, Inc. will post 2.96 earnings per share for the current year.

Corteva Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd will be paid a dividend of $0.17 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $0.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.08%. Corteva’s payout ratio is 52.71%.

Corteva declared that its Board of Directors has approved a stock repurchase program on Tuesday, November 19th that authorizes the company to repurchase $3.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to buy up to 7.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are generally an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently commented on the company. Bank of America increased their price objective on Corteva from $69.00 to $73.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Oppenheimer increased their price target on Corteva from $70.00 to $72.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. UBS Group cut their price objective on shares of Corteva from $74.00 to $73.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 10th. KeyCorp increased their target price on shares of Corteva from $68.00 to $70.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of Corteva from $67.00 to $73.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $67.73.

About Corteva

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.