Topic: Growth Stocks

VITERRA $15.95 – Toronto symbol VT

VITERRA $15.95 (Toronto symbol VT; TSINetwork Rating: Average) (1-866-569-4411; www.viterra.ca; Shares outstanding: 371.7 million; Market cap: $5.9 billion; Dividend yield: 1.0%) has agreed to a friendly takeover offer from Glencore International plc, a Switzerland-based commodity trader. The purchase price is $6.1 billion, or $16.25 per Viterra share.

Viterra was our Pick of the Month in the March 2012 issue of Stock Pickers Digest. At the time, it was trading at $10.09. That’s a 58.1% gain since that recommendation. Our view was that the company is well positioned to benefit from an expected rise in Canadian and Australian crop yields in 2012, as well as the end of the Canadian Wheat Board’s monopoly on western Canadian wheat and barley sales. In addition, its Australian operations’ sales to Asia continue to rise.

We also said that Viterra might be an attractive takeover target.

Viterra is now trading at $15.95 a share, or just below Glencore’s offer. This indicates that investors are not anticipating a higher offer from Glencore or another bidder.

We’ll say more as the takeover continues to progress, but for now Viterra is hold.

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