The Andersons, Inc. $ANDE Shares Sold by Vanguard Group Inc.

Key Points

• Vanguard trimmed its Andersons stake slightly in the fourth quarter, selling 29,044 shares and leaving it with about 4.05 million shares, or 11.97% of the company. Institutional ownership remains high at 87.06%.
• Andersons beat earnings expectations in its latest quarter, posting $1.12 EPS versus the $0.70 consensus, though revenue of $2.63 billion came in below estimates and was down 1.2% year over year.
• Analysts remain constructive on the stock, with an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $82.50. Benchmark and BMO Capital Markets both raised their targets, while insider selling has also been notable in recent months.

Vanguard Group Inc. decreased its position in shares of The Andersons, Inc. (NASDAQ:ANDE - Free Report) by 0.7% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 4,050,472 shares of the basic materials company's stock after selling 29,044 shares during the quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. owned approximately 11.97% of Andersons worth $215,364,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC boosted its position in shares of Andersons by 34.4% during the 4th quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 962 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $51,000 after acquiring an additional 246 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its holdings in Andersons by 34.8% in the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,266 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $67,000 after acquiring an additional 327 shares during the last quarter. Amalgamated Bank lifted its holdings in Andersons by 3.9% in the third quarter. Amalgamated Bank now owns 9,524 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $379,000 after acquiring an additional 356 shares during the last quarter. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH lifted its holdings in Andersons by 7.3% in the third quarter. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH now owns 7,281 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $290,000 after acquiring an additional 493 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Louisiana State Employees Retirement System lifted its holdings in Andersons by 3.3% in the third quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System now owns 15,600 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $621,000 after acquiring an additional 500 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.06% of the company's stock.

Andersons Trading Up 0.9%

Shares of ANDE stock opened at $71.45 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43, a current ratio of 1.37 and a quick ratio of 0.60. The firm has a market cap of $2.43 billion, a PE ratio of 19.00 and a beta of 0.69. The company has a 50-day moving average of $71.26 and a two-hundred day moving average of $60.81. The Andersons, Inc. has a 1-year low of $31.84 and a 1-year high of $82.11.

Andersons (NASDAQ:ANDE - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The basic materials company reported $1.12 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.70 by $0.42. Andersons had a return on equity of 10.68% and a net margin of 1.17%.The company had revenue of $2.63 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.71 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.12 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was down 1.2% compared to the same quarter last year.

Andersons Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 22nd. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 1st were paid a dividend of $0.20 per share. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, April 1st. Andersons's dividend payout ratio is 21.28%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently commented on ANDE shares. Wall Street Zen upgraded Andersons from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday. Benchmark upped their price objective on Andersons from $75.00 to $90.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday. BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on Andersons from $65.00 to $75.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, February 19th. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded Andersons from a "hold (c)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a report on Thursday. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Andersons presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $82.50.

Insider Transactions at Andersons

In related news, VP Anne G. Rex sold 2,624 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $65.16, for a total transaction of $170,979.84. Following the transaction, the vice president owned 23,829 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,552,697.64. This represents a 9.92% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Patrick E. Bowe sold 19,100 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $78.31, for a total value of $1,495,721.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 94,875 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,429,661.25. The trade was a 16.76% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold a total of 95,765 shares of company stock worth $7,205,438 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 4.30% of the company's stock.

About Andersons

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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