Andersons (NASDAQ:ANDE) Hits New 12-Month High – Should You Buy?

Shares of The Andersons, Inc. (NASDAQ:ANDE) hit a new 52-week high on Monday . The stock traded as high as $67.62 and last traded at $67.6120, with a volume of 66266 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $66.86.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ANDE has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Andersons in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. Benchmark upgraded Andersons to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday. Finally, BMO Capital Markets upgraded Andersons from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $50.00 to $65.00 in a research note on Wednesday, December 10th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $62.50.

Andersons Trading Up 0.7%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47, a current ratio of 1.47 and a quick ratio of 0.80. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $56.18 and its 200 day simple moving average is $47.40. The stock has a market cap of $2.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.47 and a beta of 0.77.

Andersons Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 23rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 2nd were issued a dividend of $0.20 per share. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.2%. This is a boost from Andersons’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.20. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 2nd. Andersons’s dividend payout ratio is currently 37.38%.

Insider Activity at Andersons

In related news, Director John T. Stout, Jr. sold 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.00, for a total transaction of $275,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 25,941 shares in the company, valued at $1,426,755. The trade was a 16.16% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, VP Anne G. Rex sold 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $51.36, for a total transaction of $154,080.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president directly owned 23,549 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,209,476.64. This trade represents a 11.30% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last three months, insiders sold 20,500 shares of company stock worth $1,076,205. Company insiders own 4.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Andersons by 162.8% during the third quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 438,219 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $17,445,000 after purchasing an additional 271,451 shares during the period. Algert Global LLC acquired a new position in shares of Andersons in the 3rd quarter valued at $8,201,000. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd increased its stake in Andersons by 262.8% in the 2nd quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd now owns 273,377 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $10,047,000 after purchasing an additional 198,029 shares in the last quarter. Walnut Level Capital LLC acquired a new stake in Andersons during the 2nd quarter worth about $6,989,000. Finally, First Trust Advisors LP raised its holdings in Andersons by 11.5% during the 2nd quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 1,722,092 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $63,287,000 after buying an additional 176,972 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 87.06% of the company’s stock.

Andersons Company Profile

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.