Andersons (NASDAQ:ANDE) Shares Gap Down - Here's What Happened

Key Points

• Shares gapped down before trading Thursday, opening at $70.27 after a $73.27 close and last trading around $70.50.
• The company reported EPS of $2.04, topping the $1.56 consensus, but revenue missed at $2.54B and was down 18.8% year‑over‑year.
• Analysts' consensus is a "Moderate Buy" with an average price target of $68.33 (below the recent price); the firm declared a $0.20 quarterly dividend (1.1% yield) and insiders sold roughly 44,299 shares (~$3.17M) in the last 90 days.

The Andersons, Inc. (NASDAQ:ANDE - Get Free Report)'s share price gapped down prior to trading on Thursday . The stock had previously closed at $73.27, but opened at $70.27. Andersons shares last traded at $70.4990, with a volume of 7,217 shares changing hands.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently commented on the company. Benchmark restated a "buy" rating on shares of Andersons in a research report on Wednesday, February 18th. Weiss Ratings restated a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Andersons in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price objective on Andersons from $65.00 to $75.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 19th. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut Andersons from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, March 14th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $68.33.

Andersons Price Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 0.60, a current ratio of 1.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.39 billion, a PE ratio of 25.12 and a beta of 0.68. The company has a 50-day moving average of $69.00 and a 200 day moving average of $57.50.

Andersons (NASDAQ:ANDE - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 17th. The basic materials company reported $2.04 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.56 by $0.48. Andersons had a return on equity of 7.76% and a net margin of 0.87%.The firm had revenue of $2.54 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.69 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.31 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 18.8% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts predict that The Andersons, Inc. will post 3.11 EPS for the current year.

Andersons Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 22nd. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 1st will be given a dividend of $0.20 per share. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 1st. Andersons's payout ratio is presently 28.57%.

Insider Transactions at Andersons

In related news, Director Patrick E. Bowe sold 15,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $74.33, for a total transaction of $1,114,950.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 129,875 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,653,608.75. The trade was a 10.35% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director John T. Stout, Jr. sold 2,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.30, for a total value of $175,750.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 23,441 shares in the company, valued at $1,647,902.30. This trade represents a 9.64% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 44,299 shares of company stock valued at $3,166,721 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 4.30% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Andersons

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Uniplan Investment Counsel Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Andersons in the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC acquired a new position in shares of Andersons in the 3rd quarter valued at $30,000. Optima Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of Andersons in the 4th quarter valued at $32,000. Larson Financial Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of Andersons by 33,600.0% in the 3rd quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 1,011 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 1,008 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted its stake in Andersons by 95.2% during the 4th quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 820 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $44,000 after acquiring an additional 400 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.06% of the company's stock.

Andersons Company Profile

The Andersons, Inc operates as a diversified agriculture company offering a broad range of products and services to farmers, retailers and industrial customers. Through its Grain Group, the company purchases, stores, merchandises and transports corn, soybeans and other commodities, while its Renewables Group produces ethanol and distillers grains at multiple plants in the U.S. The Rail Group provides locomotive leasing, railcar repair and related maintenance services, and the Horticulture Group supplies turf, specialty and horticultural products to landscaping professionals and consumer lawn and garden retailers.

Founded in 1947 and headquartered in Maumee, Ohio, The Andersons has grown from a regional grain elevator operator into an integrated agribusiness platform.

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