The Andersons, Inc. (NASDAQ:ANDE) Short Interest Up 19.5% in January

The Andersons, Inc. (NASDAQ:ANDE) was the recipient of a significant increase in short interest in January. As of January 15th, there was short interest totalling 764,300 shares, an increase of 19.5% from the December 31st total of 639,700 shares. Currently, 2.4% of the shares of the stock are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 309,100 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 2.5 days.

Andersons Trading Down 1.4 %

NASDAQ ANDE traded down $0.59 on Monday, hitting $40.17. 43,368 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 246,368. Andersons has a 52-week low of $39.25 and a 52-week high of $61.46. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 1.98 and a quick ratio of 1.23. The company has a market capitalization of $1.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.48 and a beta of 0.58. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $43.41 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $46.99.

Andersons (NASDAQ:ANDE) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, November 4th. The basic materials company reported $0.80 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.43 by $0.37. Andersons had a net margin of 1.06% and a return on equity of 8.21%. The firm had revenue of $2.62 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.90 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.13 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 27.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts predict that Andersons will post 2.9 EPS for the current year.

Andersons Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 23rd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, January 2nd were paid a $0.195 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, January 2nd. This is an increase from Andersons’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.19. This represents a $0.78 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.94%. Andersons’s dividend payout ratio is 22.29%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have issued reports on ANDE. Stephens restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $60.00 price target on shares of Andersons in a research report on Thursday, January 2nd. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Andersons from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Joseph E. Mcneely sold 2,382 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $47.73, for a total transaction of $113,692.86. Following the sale, the insider now owns 49,601 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,367,455.73. The trade was a 4.58 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 5.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Andersons

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of ANDE. Peoples Bank KS boosted its holdings in Andersons by 250.0% in the fourth quarter. Peoples Bank KS now owns 700 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 500 shares in the last quarter. KBC Group NV boosted its holdings in Andersons by 70.3% during the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 1,558 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $63,000 after acquiring an additional 643 shares during the period. Truvestments Capital LLC bought a new stake in Andersons during the third quarter valued at about $98,000. Systematic Financial Management LP bought a new stake in Andersons during the third quarter valued at about $227,000. Finally, Inspire Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Andersons by 11.8% during the third quarter. Inspire Advisors LLC now owns 4,547 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $228,000 after acquiring an additional 480 shares during the period. 87.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Andersons

The Andersons, Inc operates in trade, renewables, and nutrient and industrial sectors in the United States, Canada, Mexico, Egypt, Switzerland, and internationally. It operates through three segments: Trade, Renewables, and Nutrient & Industrial. The company’s Trade segment operates grain elevators; stores commodities; and provides grain marketing, risk management, and origination services, as well as sells commodities, such as corn, soybeans, wheat, oats, ethanol, and corn oil.