Archer Daniels Midland (NYSE:ADM) Reaches New 12-Month High - Here's Why

Key Points

• Archer Daniels Midland (NYSE:ADM) reached a new 52-week high of $64.57 during trading, closing at $63.90 and experiencing a volume of over 1.4 million shares.
• Analysts have upgraded the stock, with Barclays elevating its rating to "equal weight" and increasing the target price to $61, while UBS raised its target to $70, reflecting positive sentiment in the market.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.51 per share, representing a yield of 3.2%, with a dividend payout ratio of 89.87%.

Shares of Archer Daniels Midland Company (NYSE:ADM - Get Free Report) hit a new 52-week high during trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $64.57 and last traded at $63.90, with a volume of 1474277 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $61.85.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have commented on the stock. Barclays upgraded shares of Archer Daniels Midland from an "underweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $50.00 to $61.00 in a research report on Wednesday, August 6th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on shares of Archer Daniels Midland from $47.00 to $57.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 12th. UBS Group reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $70.00 price objective (up from $60.00) on shares of Archer Daniels Midland in a research report on Monday, August 11th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Archer Daniels Midland from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, August 9th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. began coverage on shares of Archer Daniels Midland in a research report on Wednesday, August 20th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $61.00 target price for the company. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $55.50.

Archer Daniels Midland Trading Up 2.8%

The stock has a market capitalization of $30.54 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.98, a PEG ratio of 3.40 and a beta of 0.70. The company's 50 day moving average is $61.01 and its 200 day moving average is $54.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a current ratio of 1.42.

Archer Daniels Midland (NYSE:ADM - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Monday, December 2nd. The company reported $1.63 earnings per share for the quarter. The business had revenue of $21.70 billion for the quarter. Archer Daniels Midland had a net margin of 1.33% and a return on equity of 8.43%. On average, research analysts forecast that Archer Daniels Midland Company will post 4.31 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Archer Daniels Midland Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 10th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, August 20th were issued a dividend of $0.51 per share. This represents a $2.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.2%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, August 20th. Archer Daniels Midland's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 89.87%.

Institutional Trading of Archer Daniels Midland

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Archer Daniels Midland by 350.4% in the first quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 17,455,324 shares of the company's stock valued at $838,030,000 after purchasing an additional 13,579,379 shares during the last quarter. Dodge & Cox acquired a new stake in shares of Archer Daniels Midland in the second quarter valued at approximately $345,689,000. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Archer Daniels Midland in the second quarter valued at approximately $340,247,000. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its holdings in shares of Archer Daniels Midland by 17.9% in the first quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 24,944,136 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,197,568,000 after purchasing an additional 3,791,597 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Nuveen LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Archer Daniels Midland in the first quarter valued at approximately $81,306,000. 78.28% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.

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