Investors Buy Large Volume of Put Options on Corteva (NYSE:CTVA)

Corteva, Inc. (NYSE:CTVA - Get Free Report) was the recipient of unusually large options trading activity on Friday. Stock investors acquired 3,134 put options on the company. This represents an increase of 393% compared to the average daily volume of 636 put options.

Corteva Trading Down 3.9 %

NYSE:CTVA traded down $2.22 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $55.19. 5,636,716 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,269,070. The company has a market capitalization of $37.93 billion, a P/E ratio of 57.57, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.85 and a beta of 0.77. Corteva has a twelve month low of $43.89 and a twelve month high of $63.75. The company has a quick ratio of 0.96, a current ratio of 1.50 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08. The company's 50 day moving average is $58.34 and its two-hundred day moving average is $55.67.

Corteva Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Investors of record on Monday, December 2nd will be given a $0.17 dividend. This represents a $0.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.23%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 2nd. Corteva's dividend payout ratio is currently 68.69%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price target on Corteva from $69.00 to $68.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Monday. Bank of America upgraded Corteva from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and lifted their price target for the company from $59.00 to $67.00 in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. KeyCorp decreased their target price on shares of Corteva from $66.00 to $62.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on shares of Corteva from $57.00 to $55.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Finally, Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Corteva from $58.00 to $62.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, November 8th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and fifteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $63.68.

Institutional Trading of Corteva

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. M&T Bank Corp increased its position in shares of Corteva by 0.8% during the 3rd quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 2,077,000 shares of the company's stock worth $122,107,000 after purchasing an additional 16,087 shares during the last quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its stake in shares of Corteva by 1.4% in the third quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 415,007 shares of the company's stock valued at $24,398,000 after acquiring an additional 5,819 shares in the last quarter. MML Investors Services LLC increased its holdings in shares of Corteva by 3.3% during the third quarter. MML Investors Services LLC now owns 91,727 shares of the company's stock worth $5,393,000 after purchasing an additional 2,921 shares during the period. National Bank of Canada FI lifted its position in shares of Corteva by 77.9% during the 3rd quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 359,994 shares of the company's stock valued at $21,164,000 after acquiring an additional 157,614 shares during the period. Finally, iA Global Asset Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Corteva by 14.8% during the 3rd quarter. iA Global Asset Management Inc. now owns 5,745 shares of the company's stock worth $338,000 after acquiring an additional 742 shares in the last quarter. 81.54% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.