Monsanto Company (MON) Upgraded to Strong-Buy at Vetr Inc.

Monsanto Company (NYSE:MON) was upgraded by Vetr from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note issued to investors on Thursday. The firm currently has a $123.50 target price on the stock. Vetr‘s target price points to a potential upside of 12.66% from the stock’s previous close.

Other large investors recently modified their holdings of the company. State Street Corp increased its stake in shares of Monsanto Company by 0.9% in the first quarter. State Street Corp now owns 18,623,044 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,634,002,000 after buying an additional 173,201 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA increased its stake in shares of Monsanto Company by 17.1% in the fourth quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 14,319,095 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,410,717,000 after buying an additional 2,094,420 shares during the period. BlackRock Fund Advisors increased its stake in shares of Monsanto Company by 0.4% in the first quarter. BlackRock Fund Advisors now owns 5,638,148 shares of the company’s stock valued at $494,691,000 after buying an additional 20,100 shares during the period. Independent Franchise Partners LLP increased its stake in shares of Monsanto Company by 17.4% in the fourth quarter. Independent Franchise Partners LLP now owns 3,837,369 shares of the company’s stock valued at $378,057,000 after buying an additional 569,891 shares during the period. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Monsanto Company by 5.2% in the first quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,718,453 shares of the company’s stock valued at $325,622,000 after buying an additional 182,728 shares during the period.

In related news, EVP Steven Mizell sold 9,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $89.06, for a total value of $846,070.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 310 shares in the company, valued at approximately $27,608.60. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director Charles S. Mcmillan acquired 3,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 12th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $87.25 per share, for a total transaction of $305,375.00. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 58,440 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,098,890. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here.

Several other brokerages have also recently weighed in on MON. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reiterated a “neutral” rating on shares of Monsanto Company in a research report on Wednesday. TheStreet upgraded Monsanto Company to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday. Wells Fargo reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Monsanto Company in a research report on Tuesday. Deutsche Bank reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $100.00 price target on shares of Monsanto Company in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, Macquarie set a $110.00 price target on Monsanto Company and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating, fifteen have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. The stock currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $104.73.

Shares of Monsanto Company (NYSE:MON) traded down 1.84% during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $109.62. 5,084,271 shares of the stock traded hands. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $94.68 and its 200 day moving average price is $92.89. The company has a market capitalization of $47.89 billion and a PE ratio of 34.77. Monsanto Company has a 1-year low of $81.22 and a 1-year high of $119.09.

Monsanto Company (NYSE:MON) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 6th. The company reported $2.42 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.44 by $0.02. The company earned $4.53 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.81 billion. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 12.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.90 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Monsanto Company will post $4.63 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Monsanto Company (Monsanto) is a provider of agricultural products for farmers. The Company’s seeds, biotechnology trait products, and herbicides provide farmers with solutions that improve productivity, reduce the costs of farming, and produce better foods for consumers and better feed for animals. It manages business in two segments: Seeds and Genomics, and Agricultural Productivity.

To view Vetr’s full report, visit Vetr’s official website.