Ingredion Incorporated (NYSE:INGR) Sees Large Growth in Short Interest

Ingredion Incorporated (NYSE:INGR) was the target of a significant growth in short interest during the month of August. As of August 31st, there was short interest totaling 1,930,000 shares, a growth of 25.3% from the August 15th total of 1,540,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 461,800 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 4.2 days. Approximately 3.0% of the company’s stock are short sold. Approximately 3.0% of the company’s stock are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 461,800 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 4.2 days.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

INGR has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Ingredion from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, September 13th. UBS Group lifted their price objective on Ingredion from $149.00 to $151.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $151.40.

Ingredion Stock Down 1.5%

Ingredion stock opened at $123.81 on Thursday. Ingredion has a fifty-two week low of $120.51 and a fifty-two week high of $155.44. The stock has a market cap of $7.95 billion, a PE ratio of 12.08, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.01 and a beta of 0.77. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $129.20 and its 200 day simple moving average is $132.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41, a quick ratio of 1.81 and a current ratio of 2.78.

Ingredion (NYSE:INGR) last announced its earnings results on Friday, August 1st. The company reported $2.87 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.78 by $0.09. Ingredion had a return on equity of 19.04% and a net margin of 9.24%.The firm had revenue of $1.83 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.89 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.87 EPS. The company’s revenue was down 2.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Ingredion has set its FY 2025 guidance at 11.100-11.600 EPS. Research analysts predict that Ingredion will post 11.14 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ingredion Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 21st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, October 1st will be given a dividend of $0.82 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, October 1st. This represents a $3.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.6%. This is a boost from Ingredion’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.80. Ingredion’s payout ratio is currently 31.22%.

Insider Transactions at Ingredion

In other news, CEO James P. Zallie sold 36,287 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $126.52, for a total transaction of $4,591,031.24. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 50,129 shares in the company, valued at $6,342,321.08. This represents a 41.99% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, SVP Larry Fernandes sold 850 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $128.39, for a total transaction of $109,131.50. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 31,171 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,002,044.69. This trade represents a 2.65% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 37,137 shares of company stock valued at $4,700,163. Company insiders own 2.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ingredion

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Ingredion in the second quarter worth about $82,779,000. Allianz Asset Management GmbH lifted its stake in Ingredion by 42.9% in the 1st quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH now owns 1,204,347 shares of the company’s stock worth $162,840,000 after purchasing an additional 361,584 shares in the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC lifted its stake in Ingredion by 1,093.5% in the 1st quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 365,693 shares of the company’s stock worth $49,445,000 after purchasing an additional 335,052 shares in the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB lifted its stake in Ingredion by 66.3% in the 2nd quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 722,933 shares of the company’s stock worth $97,531,000 after purchasing an additional 288,201 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Northern Trust Corp lifted its stake in Ingredion by 37.0% in the 1st quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 982,789 shares of the company’s stock worth $132,883,000 after purchasing an additional 265,263 shares in the last quarter. 85.27% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Ingredion Company Profile

Ingredion Incorporated, together with its subsidiaries, manufactures and sells sweeteners, starches, nutrition ingredients, and biomaterial solutions derived from wet milling and processing corn, and other starch-based materials to a range of industries in North America, South America, the Asia Pacific, Europe, the Middle East, and Africa.