B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. AG Sells 2,840,125 Shares of Corteva, Inc. $CTVA

Key Points

• B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. AG significantly reduced its holdings in Corteva, Inc. by 98.9% during the 1st quarter, ending with $1.93 million in shares.
• Corteva's stock was rated an "outperform" by several analysts with a consensus target price of $80.25 and thirteen analysts rated it as a Buy.
• The company declared an increased quarterly dividend of $0.18, up from $0.17, representing a 1.0% dividend yield with a payout ratio of 33.17%.

B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. AG reduced its holdings in shares of Corteva, Inc. (NYSE:CTVA - Free Report) by 98.9% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 30,734 shares of the company's stock after selling 2,840,125 shares during the period. B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. AG's holdings in Corteva were worth $1,934,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. Legacy Financial Advisors Inc. boosted its position in shares of Corteva by 4.4% during the 1st quarter. Legacy Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 3,761 shares of the company's stock valued at $237,000 after acquiring an additional 160 shares in the last quarter. Signaturefd LLC boosted its position in shares of Corteva by 1.9% during the 1st quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 9,353 shares of the company's stock valued at $589,000 after acquiring an additional 172 shares in the last quarter. NTV Asset Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Corteva by 3.3% during the 1st quarter. NTV Asset Management LLC now owns 5,457 shares of the company's stock valued at $343,000 after acquiring an additional 173 shares in the last quarter. Avantax Planning Partners Inc. boosted its position in Corteva by 4.1% in the first quarter. Avantax Planning Partners Inc. now owns 4,539 shares of the company's stock valued at $286,000 after buying an additional 178 shares in the last quarter. Finally, PFG Investments LLC boosted its position in Corteva by 1.4% in the first quarter. PFG Investments LLC now owns 12,867 shares of the company's stock valued at $810,000 after buying an additional 180 shares in the last quarter. 81.54% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Corteva Stock Up 0.4%

CTVA traded up $0.31 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $72.70. 338,891 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,784,700. Corteva, Inc. has a 1-year low of $53.40 and a 1-year high of $77.41. The stock's 50-day moving average is $73.42 and its two-hundred day moving average is $67.66. The stock has a market cap of $49.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.45, a PEG ratio of 1.70 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.

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

Corteva Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 2nd will be given a dividend of $0.18 per share. This represents a $0.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.0%. This is an increase from Corteva's previous quarterly dividend of $0.17. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 2nd. Corteva's payout ratio is currently 33.17%.

Insider Transactions at Corteva

In other Corteva news, EVP Robert D. King sold 37,280 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, August 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $74.20, for a total transaction of $2,766,176.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 49,262 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,655,240.40. This represents a 43.08% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.15% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have commented on the stock. KeyCorp boosted their price target on shares of Corteva from $84.00 to $85.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, August 8th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Corteva from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 9th. Barclays raised shares of Corteva from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $75.00 to $84.00 in a research note on Wednesday, August 13th. Royal Bank Of Canada reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of Corteva in a research note on Monday, August 11th. Finally, Oppenheimer set a $87.00 price target on shares of Corteva and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 15th. Thirteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Corteva presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $80.25.

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.