Corteva (NYSE:CTVA) Issues Quarterly Earnings Results

Corteva (NYSE:CTVA) posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday. The company reported $0.32 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.34 by ($0.02), Zacks reports. Corteva had a return on equity of 6.63% and a net margin of 4.18%.

Corteva Stock Down 3.2 %

Shares of CTVA traded down $2.08 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $63.62. The company had a trading volume of 8,905,539 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,399,256. Corteva has a 52 week low of $50.01 and a 52 week high of $66.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a current ratio of 1.50. The company has a market capitalization of $43.72 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 64.26, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.71 and a beta of 0.78. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $60.20 and a 200 day moving average price of $58.07.

Corteva Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 3rd will be issued a $0.17 dividend. This represents a $0.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.07%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 3rd. Corteva’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 68.69%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have commented on CTVA. Oppenheimer reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $70.00 price target (up from $69.00) on shares of Corteva in a research report on Friday, November 8th. Bank of America lifted their target price on shares of Corteva from $67.00 to $69.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 20th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Corteva from $67.00 to $73.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Barclays raised their target price on shares of Corteva from $62.00 to $64.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada raised their price target on shares of Corteva from $68.00 to $73.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, December 19th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and fourteen have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $67.06.

Corteva declared that its board has initiated a stock buyback plan on Tuesday, November 19th that allows the company to buyback $3.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to purchase up to 7.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are typically a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

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.