Archer-Daniels-Midland Company (NYSE:ADM) Sees Large Increase in Short Interest

Archer-Daniels-Midland Company (NYSE:ADM) was the recipient of a significant increase in short interest during the month of December. As of December 31st, there was short interest totalling 11,250,000 shares, an increase of 13.0% from the December 15th total of 9,960,000 shares. Approximately 2.4% of the shares of the company are sold short. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 2,970,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 3.8 days.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on the company. Citigroup raised their price target on Archer-Daniels-Midland from $51.00 to $55.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. Stephens assumed coverage on Archer-Daniels-Midland in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $55.00 target price for the company. BMO Capital Markets lowered their price objective on Archer-Daniels-Midland from $55.00 to $51.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on shares of Archer-Daniels-Midland from $57.00 to $52.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, November 12th. Finally, Barclays decreased their price objective on shares of Archer-Daniels-Midland from $60.00 to $56.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and fourteen have assigned a hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $59.08.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Archer-Daniels-Midland

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Archer-Daniels-Midland during the third quarter worth $25,000. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC acquired a new position in Archer-Daniels-Midland during the 3rd quarter worth about $26,000. Altshuler Shaham Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Archer-Daniels-Midland in the 2nd quarter valued at about $28,000. Peterson Financial Group Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Archer-Daniels-Midland in the third quarter valued at about $28,000. Finally, Raleigh Capital Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Archer-Daniels-Midland by 179.4% during the fourth quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. now owns 556 shares of the company’s stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 357 shares during the last quarter. 78.28% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Archer-Daniels-Midland Price Performance

Shares of NYSE ADM traded up $0.22 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $51.23. 3,234,014 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,508,151. The company has a market cap of $24.52 billion, a PE ratio of 14.64 and a beta of 0.72. Archer-Daniels-Midland has a twelve month low of $48.40 and a twelve month high of $68.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34, a current ratio of 1.40 and a quick ratio of 0.84. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $51.73 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $56.84.

Archer-Daniels-Midland announced that its board has approved a stock repurchase program on Wednesday, December 11th that allows the company to buyback 100,000,000 outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to purchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Archer-Daniels-Midland Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 12th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, November 21st were issued a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.90%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, November 21st. Archer-Daniels-Midland’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 57.14%.

About Archer-Daniels-Midland

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.