Short Interest in AGCO Co. (NYSE:AGCO) Grows By 8.5%

AGCO Co. (NYSE:AGCO - Get Free Report) was the target of a significant growth in short interest during the month of December. As of December 15th, there was short interest totalling 4,990,000 shares, a growth of 8.5% from the November 30th total of 4,600,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 949,900 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 5.3 days. Approximately 8.1% of the company's shares are short sold.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AGCO has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their price target on shares of AGCO from $112.00 to $99.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, November 6th. StockNews.com raised AGCO from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. Citigroup raised their target price on shares of AGCO from $95.00 to $100.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, December 9th. Morgan Stanley began coverage on AGCO in a research report on Tuesday, December 3rd. They set an "equal weight" rating and a $101.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Oppenheimer decreased their target price on AGCO from $131.00 to $111.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, November 6th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $108.10.

AGCO Stock Performance

Shares of AGCO traded up $0.38 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $93.48. 473,742 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 817,883. The firm has a market cap of $6.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 41.36, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.56 and a beta of 1.24. AGCO has a 52 week low of $84.35 and a 52 week high of $130.26. The company has a quick ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 1.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $96.26 and its 200-day simple moving average is $95.42.

AGCO (NYSE:AGCO - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, November 5th. The industrial products company reported $0.68 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.08 by ($0.40). AGCO had a net margin of 1.35% and a return on equity of 15.79%. The company had revenue of $2.60 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.90 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $3.97 earnings per share. The business's revenue was down 24.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts expect that AGCO will post 7.36 EPS for the current year.

AGCO Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 16th. Investors of record on Friday, November 15th were given a dividend of $0.29 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 15th. This represents a $1.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.24%. AGCO's dividend payout ratio is 51.33%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Brooklyn Investment Group acquired a new stake in shares of AGCO in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Venturi Wealth Management LLC grew its position in AGCO by 132.9% during the 3rd quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 368 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $36,000 after acquiring an additional 210 shares during the last quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC increased its holdings in AGCO by 50.2% in the 3rd quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 416 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $41,000 after purchasing an additional 139 shares in the last quarter. LRI Investments LLC boosted its stake in shares of AGCO by 50.0% during the third quarter. LRI Investments LLC now owns 510 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $47,000 after purchasing an additional 170 shares in the last quarter. Finally, First Horizon Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in shares of AGCO by 28.6% during the third quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 526 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $51,000 after purchasing an additional 117 shares during the last quarter. 78.80% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About AGCO

AGCO Corporation manufactures and distributes agricultural equipment and related replacement parts worldwide. It offers horsepower tractors for row crop production, soil cultivation, planting, land leveling, seeding, and commercial hay operations; utility tractors for small- and medium-sized farms, as well as for dairy, livestock, orchards, and vineyards; and compact tractors for small farms, specialty agricultural industries, landscaping, equestrian, and residential uses.