Raymond James Financial Inc. Invests $528,000 in The Andersons, Inc. (NASDAQ:ANDE)

Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in shares of The Andersons, Inc. (NASDAQ:ANDE - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 13,039 shares of the basic materials company's stock, valued at approximately $528,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Peoples Bank KS lifted its stake in Andersons by 250.0% in the 4th quarter. Peoples Bank KS now owns 700 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 500 shares during the last quarter. KBC Group NV increased its holdings in shares of Andersons by 70.3% during the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 1,558 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $63,000 after acquiring an additional 643 shares during the last quarter. EP Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Andersons during the 3rd quarter valued at $253,000. Arete Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its position in Andersons by 31.5% during the third quarter. Arete Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 6,131 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $306,000 after purchasing an additional 1,469 shares during the period. Finally, Inspire Investing LLC increased its holdings in shares of Andersons by 18.4% in the fourth quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 10,881 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $441,000 after purchasing an additional 1,690 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 87.06% of the company's stock.

Andersons Price Performance

NASDAQ:ANDE traded up $0.56 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $37.86. The stock had a trading volume of 309,015 shares, compared to its average volume of 243,746. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38, a current ratio of 1.65 and a quick ratio of 0.90. The Andersons, Inc. has a 12 month low of $35.88 and a 12 month high of $61.46. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.29 billion, a PE ratio of 11.40 and a beta of 0.55. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $41.80 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $44.13.

Andersons (NASDAQ:ANDE - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 18th. The basic materials company reported $1.36 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.02 by $0.34. Andersons had a return on equity of 7.59% and a net margin of 1.01%. The firm had revenue of $3.12 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.72 billion. On average, equities analysts anticipate that The Andersons, Inc. will post 3.11 earnings per share for the current year.

Andersons Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 22nd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 1st will be issued a $0.195 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 1st. This represents a $0.78 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.06%. Andersons's payout ratio is presently 23.49%.

Insider Activity at Andersons

In other Andersons news, VP Weston Heide sold 800 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $48.00, for a total value of $38,400.00. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 16,104 shares in the company, valued at approximately $772,992. The trade was a 4.73 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 4.30% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. StockNews.com cut Andersons from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, February 20th. Stephens reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and issued a $55.00 price target on shares of Andersons in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th.

Andersons Company Profile

The Andersons, Inc operates in trade, renewables, and nutrient and industrial sectors in the United States, Canada, Mexico, Egypt, Switzerland, and internationally. It operates through three segments: Trade, Renewables, and Nutrient & Industrial. The company's Trade segment operates grain elevators; stores commodities; and provides grain marketing, risk management, and origination services, as well as sells commodities, such as corn, soybeans, wheat, oats, ethanol, and corn oil.