New ethanol rules benefit investors

Article Excerpt

ARCHER DANIELS MIDLAND CO., $41, remains a buy. The company (New York symbol ADM; High-Growth Payer Portfolio, Manufacturing & Industry sector; Shares outstanding: 559.2 million; Market cap: $22.9 billion; Dividend yield: 3.4%; Dividend Sustainability Rating: Above Average; www.adm.com) processes corn, wheat, soybeans, canola, and other crops to make a variety of food ingredients such as flour, oils and sweeteners. It also makes ethanol from corn. With the March 2019 payment, Archer Daniels raised its quarterly dividend by 4.5%. Investors receive $0.35 a share instead of $0.335. The new annual rate of $1.40 yields 3.4%. Archer Daniels stands to benefit from the U.S. government’s proposal to increase the amount of ethanol that oil refiners must add to their fuels. That should spur ethanol demand and make it easier for the company to potentially transfer that business to investors in the form of a spinoff. spinoff…