Corteva (NYSE:CTVA) Given New $70.00 Price Target at KeyCorp

Corteva (NYSE:CTVA) had its price objective hoisted by KeyCorp from $68.00 to $70.00 in a research note released on Friday morning,Benzinga reports. KeyCorp currently has an overweight rating on the stock.

A number of other analysts have also commented on CTVA. Oppenheimer reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $70.00 price objective (up from $69.00) on shares of Corteva in a report on Friday, November 8th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of Corteva from $67.00 to $73.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. UBS Group reduced their price objective on shares of Corteva from $74.00 to $73.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 10th. Barclays lifted their target price on shares of Corteva from $62.00 to $64.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. Finally, Bank of America upped their target price on Corteva from $67.00 to $69.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 20th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and fourteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $67.31.

Corteva Stock Performance

Shares of CTVA opened at $62.32 on Friday. Corteva has a one year low of $50.01 and a one year high of $66.24. The company has a market cap of $42.83 billion, a PE ratio of 62.95, a P/E/G ratio of 1.71 and a beta of 0.78. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $60.22 and a 200-day moving average of $58.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08, a current ratio of 1.50 and a quick ratio of 0.96.

Corteva (NYSE:CTVA) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The company reported $0.32 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.34 by ($0.02). Corteva had a return on equity of 6.63% and a net margin of 4.18%. On average, equities research analysts predict that Corteva will post 2.58 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Corteva Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd will be issued a dividend of $0.17 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $0.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.09%. Corteva’s dividend payout ratio is presently 68.69%.

Corteva declared that its board has approved a share buyback plan on Tuesday, November 19th that permits the company to repurchase $3.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to buy up to 7.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are often an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Corteva

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. KBC Group NV lifted its position in Corteva by 267.3% during the third quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 1,120,104 shares of the company’s stock valued at $65,851,000 after buying an additional 815,135 shares during the period. Oak Thistle LLC bought a new stake in Corteva during the fourth quarter worth about $1,514,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in Corteva by 1.5% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 4,523,996 shares of the company’s stock worth $265,966,000 after purchasing an additional 66,052 shares during the period. Swedbank AB increased its stake in shares of Corteva by 51.9% during the fourth quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 695,641 shares of the company’s stock valued at $39,624,000 after purchasing an additional 237,764 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted its holdings in shares of Corteva by 755.8% during the fourth quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 552,769 shares of the company’s stock valued at $31,486,000 after purchasing an additional 488,181 shares during the last quarter. 81.54% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Corteva

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.