Alliancebernstein L.P. Lowers Holdings in Corteva, Inc. $CTVA

Key Points

• Alliancebernstein L.P. reduced its holdings in Corteva, Inc. by 0.7%, selling 29,416 shares, and now owns 4,274,271 shares valued at approximately $269 million.
• Corteva’s stock received multiple upgrades from research firms, with Barclays and BMO Capital Markets raising their price targets to $84.00 and $86.00 respectively, suggesting strong investor confidence.
• The company recently announced a dividend increase to $0.18 per share, reflecting a boost from its previous dividend of $0.17, contributing to an annual yield of 1.0%.

Alliancebernstein L.P. trimmed its holdings in shares of Corteva, Inc. (NYSE:CTVA - Free Report) by 0.7% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 4,274,271 shares of the company's stock after selling 29,416 shares during the period. Alliancebernstein L.P. owned about 0.63% of Corteva worth $268,980,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of CTVA. Pinney & Scofield Inc. purchased a new stake in Corteva during the 4th quarter valued at about $27,000. Valley National Advisers Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Corteva by 85.9% during the first quarter. Valley National Advisers Inc. now owns 526 shares of the company's stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 243 shares during the period. Richardson Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Corteva in the first quarter worth approximately $37,000. von Borstel & Associates Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Corteva in the first quarter worth $44,000. Finally, Horizon Financial Services LLC raised its holdings in Corteva by 4,444.4% during the 1st quarter. Horizon Financial Services LLC now owns 818 shares of the company's stock valued at $51,000 after buying an additional 800 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.54% of the company's stock.

Corteva Stock Down 1.2%

Shares of NYSE:CTVA traded down $0.87 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $72.08. The stock had a trading volume of 629,700 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,784,730. The company has a market capitalization of $48.95 billion, a PE ratio of 35.19, a PEG ratio of 1.65 and a beta of 0.78. The company has a quick ratio of 1.23, a current ratio of 1.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06. The firm's fifty day moving average is $73.31 and its 200 day moving average is $67.90. Corteva, Inc. has a 12 month low of $53.40 and a 12 month high of $77.41.

Corteva (NYSE:CTVA - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The company reported $2.20 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.89 by $0.31. The company had revenue of $6.46 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $6.26 billion. Corteva had a return on equity of 8.68% and a net margin of 8.16%.The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 5.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.83 earnings per share. Analysts anticipate that Corteva, Inc. will post 2.96 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Corteva Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 2nd will be given a dividend of $0.18 per share. This is an increase from Corteva's previous quarterly dividend of $0.17. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 2nd. This represents a $0.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.0%. Corteva's dividend payout ratio is 35.12%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have issued reports on CTVA. Wells Fargo & Company restated an "overweight" rating and issued a $83.00 price objective (up previously from $82.00) on shares of Corteva in a research report on Friday, August 8th. BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on Corteva from $74.00 to $86.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 8th. UBS Group upped their price target on Corteva from $90.00 to $91.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 7th. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Corteva in a research report on Friday, June 6th. Finally, Barclays raised Corteva from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and boosted their target price for the company from $75.00 to $84.00 in a research note on Wednesday, August 13th. Twelve equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $80.25.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Corteva news, EVP Robert D. King sold 37,280 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $74.20, for a total value of $2,766,176.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 49,262 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,655,240.40. This represents a 43.08% 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 this link. 0.15% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Corteva Company Profile

Corteva, Inc operates in the agriculture business. It operates through two segments, Seed and Crop Protection. The Seed segment develops and supplies advanced germplasm and traits that produce optimum yield for farms. It offers trait technologies that enhance resistance to weather, disease, insects, and herbicides used to control weeds, as well as food and nutritional characteristics.