AGCO Co. (NYSE:AGCO) Sees Large Decrease in Short Interest

AGCO Co. (NYSE:AGCO) was the target of a significant decline in short interest in July. As of July 15th, there was short interest totalling 2,130,000 shares, a decline of 9.7% from the June 30th total of 2,360,000 shares. Currently, 3.4% of the shares of the company are sold short. Based on an average trading volume of 820,500 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 2.6 days.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On AGCO

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Rakuten Securities Inc. acquired a new position in shares of AGCO in the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. FinTrust Capital Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of AGCO by 121.9% in the 1st quarter. FinTrust Capital Advisors LLC now owns 213 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 117 shares during the last quarter. Manchester Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of AGCO by 93.2% in the 1st quarter. Manchester Capital Management LLC now owns 228 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 110 shares during the last quarter. LRI Investments LLC purchased a new position in shares of AGCO in the first quarter worth approximately $30,000. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. increased its position in shares of AGCO by 102.4% in the second quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 344 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 174 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.80% of the company’s stock.

AGCO Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:AGCO traded down $1.89 on Thursday, reaching $92.53. 656,938 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 758,996. The company has a quick ratio of 1.09, a current ratio of 1.52 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89. AGCO has a fifty-two week low of $91.66 and a fifty-two week high of $133.84. The business’s 50-day moving average is $100.90 and its two-hundred day moving average is $110.88. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.39, a PEG ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 1.27.

AGCO (NYSE:AGCO) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 30th. The industrial products company reported $2.53 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.90 by ($0.37). AGCO had a return on equity of 21.17% and a net margin of 3.13%. The firm had revenue of $3.25 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.48 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $4.29 EPS. The firm’s revenue was down 15.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that AGCO will post 8 EPS for the current year.

AGCO Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 16th. Investors of record on Thursday, August 15th will be given a $0.29 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 15th. This represents a $1.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.25%. AGCO’s dividend payout ratio is presently 7.85%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on AGCO shares. Oppenheimer cut their target price on shares of AGCO from $133.00 to $132.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, July 22nd. Citigroup began coverage on shares of AGCO in a research report on Wednesday, June 26th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $108.00 price objective for the company. Barclays cut their price objective on shares of AGCO from $145.00 to $110.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, July 18th. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their price objective on shares of AGCO from $127.00 to $112.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, July 11th. Finally, UBS Group dropped their price target on shares of AGCO from $107.00 to $104.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $121.20.

AGCO Company Profile

AGCO Corporation manufactures and distributes agricultural equipment and related replacement parts worldwide. It offers horsepower tractors for row crop production, soil cultivation, planting, land leveling, seeding, and commercial hay operations; utility tractors for small- and medium-sized farms, as well as for dairy, livestock, orchards, and vineyards; and compact tractors for small farms, specialty agricultural industries, landscaping, equestrian, and residential uses.