Verdence Capital Advisors LLC Reduces Position in Corteva, Inc. $CTVA

Verdence Capital Advisors LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of Corteva, Inc. (NYSE:CTVA) by 4.3% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 7,174 shares of the company’s stock after selling 326 shares during the quarter. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC’s holdings in Corteva were worth $535,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Maryland Capital Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Corteva during the second quarter worth about $29,000. Valley National Advisers Inc. grew its stake in Corteva by 85.9% in the first quarter. Valley National Advisers Inc. now owns 526 shares of the company’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 243 shares in the last quarter. DHJJ Financial Advisors Ltd. grew its stake in Corteva by 132.2% in the second quarter. DHJJ Financial Advisors Ltd. now owns 527 shares of the company’s stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 300 shares in the last quarter. Richardson Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Corteva in the first quarter worth about $37,000. Finally, von Borstel & Associates Inc. acquired a new position in Corteva in the first quarter worth about $44,000. 81.54% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Corteva Stock Performance

Shares of CTVA stock opened at $62.68 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.23, a current ratio of 1.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06. The business has a 50 day moving average of $70.00 and a two-hundred day moving average of $68.96. Corteva, Inc. has a 52 week low of $53.40 and a 52 week high of $77.41. The company has a market cap of $42.56 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.57, a PEG ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 0.76.

Corteva (NYSE:CTVA) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 6th. The company reported $2.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.89 by $0.31. The business had revenue of $6.46 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.26 billion. Corteva had a return on equity of 8.68% and a net margin of 8.16%.The business’s revenue was up 5.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.83 earnings per share. As a group, analysts anticipate that Corteva, Inc. will post 2.96 EPS for the current year.

Corteva Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 2nd were given a dividend of $0.18 per share. This is a boost from Corteva’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.17. This represents a $0.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, September 2nd. Corteva’s payout ratio is presently 35.12%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

CTVA has been the subject of a number of research reports. Argus decreased their price target on Corteva from $83.00 to $80.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday. Wall Street Zen upgraded Corteva from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, August 9th. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price target on Corteva from $92.00 to $85.00 in a research note on Thursday, October 2nd. Oppenheimer set a $87.00 price target on Corteva and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 15th. Finally, Mizuho decreased their price target on Corteva from $85.00 to $78.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have issued a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $80.81.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Robert D. King sold 37,280 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $74.20, for a total transaction of $2,766,176.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 49,262 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,655,240.40. The trade was a 43.08% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.15% of the company’s stock.

Corteva Company Profile

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.