Southernsun Asset Management LLC Buys 23,513 Shares of AGCO Co. (NYSE:AGCO)

Southernsun Asset Management LLC lifted its position in shares of AGCO Co. (NYSE:AGCO - Free Report) by 6.1% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 409,957 shares of the industrial products company's stock after purchasing an additional 23,513 shares during the period. AGCO accounts for approximately 4.8% of Southernsun Asset Management LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 8th biggest holding. Southernsun Asset Management LLC owned approximately 0.55% of AGCO worth $38,323,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. Hsbc Holdings PLC increased its position in AGCO by 5.3% during the 4th quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 11,257 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $1,053,000 after purchasing an additional 568 shares during the period. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC boosted its holdings in AGCO by 45.4% during the fourth quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 6,023 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $563,000 after purchasing an additional 1,880 shares during the last quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC grew its stake in AGCO by 9.1% in the 4th quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC now owns 34,929 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $3,265,000 after purchasing an additional 2,905 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its stake in AGCO by 9.5% in the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,984,081 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $278,951,000 after purchasing an additional 258,054 shares during the last quarter. Finally, First Trust Advisors LP boosted its position in AGCO by 15.4% during the fourth quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 1,118,393 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $104,547,000 after purchasing an additional 148,896 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 78.80% of the company's stock.

AGCO Trading Up 4.4 %

Shares of AGCO stock traded up $3.64 during trading on Thursday, hitting $85.97. The stock had a trading volume of 939,595 shares, compared to its average volume of 893,898. AGCO Co. has a 12 month low of $73.79 and a 12 month high of $119.88. The stock has a market cap of $6.41 billion, a PE ratio of -15.11, a PEG ratio of 1.80 and a beta of 1.16. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $91.22 and its 200-day simple moving average is $95.34. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60, a current ratio of 1.34 and a quick ratio of 0.63.

AGCO (NYSE:AGCO - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The industrial products company reported $1.97 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $2.01 by ($0.04). AGCO had a positive return on equity of 13.40% and a negative net margin of 3.64%. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that AGCO Co. will post 4.2 EPS for the current fiscal year.

AGCO Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 16th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 15th will be given a dividend of $0.29 per share. This represents a $1.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.35%. AGCO's dividend payout ratio is presently -20.39%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently weighed in on AGCO. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of AGCO from $102.00 to $111.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 15th. Morgan Stanley cut AGCO from an "equal weight" rating to an "underweight" rating and lowered their target price for the company from $94.00 to $75.00 in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. Baird R W cut AGCO from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, March 3rd. StockNews.com raised AGCO from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Robert W. Baird lowered shares of AGCO from an "outperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and reduced their price target for the company from $116.00 to $100.00 in a research report on Monday, March 3rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, AGCO has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $99.80.

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.