Verity & Verity LLC Grows Stake in Archer-Daniels-Midland Company (NYSE:ADM)

Verity & Verity LLC increased its holdings in Archer-Daniels-Midland Company (NYSE:ADM - Free Report) by 7.8% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 170,273 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 12,388 shares during the period. Verity & Verity LLC's holdings in Archer-Daniels-Midland were worth $8,602,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of ADM. Empower Advisory Group LLC grew its position in Archer-Daniels-Midland by 6.4% in the third quarter. Empower Advisory Group LLC now owns 1,138,455 shares of the company's stock worth $68,011,000 after acquiring an additional 68,133 shares in the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB raised its position in Archer-Daniels-Midland by 30.7% in the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 2,082,442 shares of the company's stock worth $105,163,000 after purchasing an additional 489,217 shares during the period. Kieckhefer Group LLC bought a new stake in Archer-Daniels-Midland in the fourth quarter worth $2,339,000. Pacer Advisors Inc. grew its position in Archer-Daniels-Midland by 6.4% during the 3rd quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 8,086,446 shares of the company's stock worth $483,084,000 after acquiring an additional 489,554 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Marathon Asset Management Ltd grew its holdings in shares of Archer-Daniels-Midland by 4.5% in the third quarter. Marathon Asset Management Ltd now owns 303,155 shares of the company's stock worth $18,110,000 after purchasing an additional 13,177 shares during the last quarter. 78.28% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on ADM shares. Bank of America lowered shares of Archer-Daniels-Midland from a "neutral" rating to an "underperform" rating and dropped their target price for the stock from $63.00 to $54.00 in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. Stephens assumed coverage on Archer-Daniels-Midland in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. They issued an "equal weight" rating and a $55.00 price target on the stock. BMO Capital Markets lowered their price objective on Archer-Daniels-Midland from $55.00 to $51.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Barclays cut their price objective on shares of Archer-Daniels-Midland from $60.00 to $56.00 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. Finally, Citigroup lifted their price objective on Archer-Daniels-Midland from $51.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and fourteen have given a hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Archer-Daniels-Midland currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $59.08.

Archer-Daniels-Midland Price Performance

NYSE:ADM traded up $0.22 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $51.23. The stock had a trading volume of 3,234,014 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,508,151. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $51.73 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $56.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a current ratio of 1.40. The stock has a market capitalization of $24.52 billion, a PE ratio of 14.64 and a beta of 0.72. Archer-Daniels-Midland Company has a 52 week low of $48.40 and a 52 week high of $68.85.

Archer-Daniels-Midland Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 12th. Investors of record on Thursday, November 21st were given a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, November 21st. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.90%. Archer-Daniels-Midland's dividend payout ratio is presently 57.14%.

Archer-Daniels-Midland announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock buyback program on Wednesday, December 11th that permits the company to repurchase 100,000,000 shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to reacquire shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are typically an indication that the company's board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Archer-Daniels-Midland Company Profile

Archer-Daniels-Midland Company engages in the procurement, transportation, storage, processing, and merchandising of agricultural commodities, ingredients, flavors, and solutions in the United States, Switzerland, the Cayman Islands, Brazil, Mexico, Canada, the United Kingdom, and internationally. It operates in three segments: Ag Services and Oilseeds, Carbohydrate Solutions, and Nutrition.