Can Monsanto Company Continue to Deliver Growth to Your Portfolio?
Biotech seed producer and agricultural sciences firm MonsantoCompany has returned outsized gains to investors over its life as a public company. In fact, the company's stock has returned 640% in the last decade -- walloping the S&P 500 by more than 580% in that time. What has driven shares higher? While we can point to swelling top and bottom lines as the primary reason, we shouldn't forget that pipeline success ultimately determines growth. Can a company as mature as Monsanto continue to innovate and deliver growth in the years ahead?
Growth opportunities abound
First, let's note that investors shouldn't expect another 640% gain (not anytime soon, anyway) from a company sporting a market cap of $57 billion. That doesn't mean Monsanto is done growing, however. Consider that a record 29 of more than 70 pipeline projects advanced in development the last year. The progress included more than 10 products from the company's new technology platform and five products that were successfully commercialized. Here's how the highlights break down by platform:
Technology Platform | Pipeline Advancements | Highlighted Products |
|---|---|---|
Biotechnology | 9 | Intacta RR2 PRO soybeans, next-gen SmartStax PRO corn |
Breeding | 7 | Enhanced resistance to Gray Lead Spot (corn), Resistance to Bacterial Wilt (tomatoes), Downy Mildew (lettuce) |
Biologicals | 5 | BioDirect Bee Health |
Integrated Farming Systems | 8 | Weather-enhanced soybeans and corn |
Source: Monsanto.
While the progress and future growth opportunities are astounding, I'll bet many readers aren't aware that Monsanto has multiple platforms. For instance, the company's breeding platform uses traditional, non-genetically modifying (well, even breeding is genetically modifying) techniques to introduce disease resistance to various crop varieties. In fact, Monsanto's breeding platform is the most advanced in the industry. Remember that the next time you tout "natural" agricultural methods.
Meanwhile, the biologicals platform works to create products that improve crop health and productivity. Monsanto is just beginning to research the technology, but it hasn't been shy about investing in it. In 2011, it made a highly criticized acquisition of bee health biotech company Beeologics, which has become an integral part of the platform today. Ironically, the company most (mistakenly) associated with colony collapse disorder, or CCD, in honey bees could become their savior. (Product candidates under development for supporting bee health are using RNAi to target two viruses that commonly target honey bees, which are the scientifically proven culprits of CCD.)
More recently, Monsanto partnered with leading industrial enzymes and microbial products company Novozymes to bolster future development of agricultural biologicals. It also made a generous $300 million upfront payment to solidify the game-changing alliance and acknowledge Novozyme's leading technology. How big is the platform's potential? The global opportunity for microbial solutions in agricultural applications stood at $2.3 billion and has grown at a mid-teen annual clip, although its a nascent field that is just beginning to grow in importance. Early adopters such as Monsanto and Novozymes stand to reap the greatest rewards.
Foolish bottom line
Monsanto has largely relied on its industry-leading biotechnology platform in the last decade. While the platform will continue to make substantial contributions going forward, the company is making significant progress with multiple complementary platforms that have amazing growth potential. Investors cannot expect every product candidate to be successfully commercialized, but there's no reason to believe long-term growth is anywhere near finished. Monsanto expects mid-to-high teens operational growth and, quite frankly, I can't disagree.
Can't invest in Monsanto?
A company as controversial as Monsanto isn't fit for every investor, but there are other growth opportunities. And, let's face it, there's a huge difference between a good stock and a stock that can make you rich. The Motley Fool's chief investment officer has selected his No. 1 stock for 2014, and it's one of those stocks that could make you rich. You can find out which stock it is in the special free report "The Motley Fool's Top Stock for 2014." Just click here to access the report and find out the name of this under-the-radar company.
The article Can Monsanto Company Continue to Deliver Growth to Your Portfolio? originally appeared on Fool.com.
Fool contributor Maxx Chatsko has no position in any stocks mentioned. Check out his personal portfolio, his CAPS page, his previous writing for The Motley Fool, or his work for the SynBioBeta Blog to keep up with developments in the synthetic biology industry.The Motley Fool has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. Try any of our Foolish newsletter services free for 30 days. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
Copyright © 1995 - 2014 The Motley Fool, LLC. All rights reserved. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
