Corteva’s pullback following the agricultural technology company’s split announcement just opened up a buying opportunity, according to JPMorgan. Analyst Jeffrey Zekauskas on Thursday upgraded Corteva to overweight from neutral, saying the agricultural stock is undervalued after Wednesday’s pullback. Shares dropped 9.1% on Wednesday , after the company said it will separate into two publicly traded entities in the second half of 2026. “We do not believe that the split announcement has lowered the value of Corteva,” Zekauskas wrote on Thursday. “We do think that the sharp decrease in the value of Corteva has created an undervaluation of the company.” The analyst’s year-end target of $70 remained unchanged. It implies roughly 14% upside from Wednesday’s closing price of $61.47. The stock was little changed in premarket trading. CTVA 1D mountain Corteva Corteva was already a laggard this year, rising nearly 8%, while the S & P 500 is higher by more than 14%. Yet, Zekauskas said Corteva’s plan to create more value over time through a spinoff of its seed and crop chemical companies could be a good one. In particular, the crop chemicals company could be trading at a higher multiple, he said. “When we look at the valuation of the two pieces of Corteva, we think that the Seed company is selling currently at about 13.5x EBITDA (the gross margin of the Seed business is above 50%) and the Crop Chemical company is trading at 6x EBITDA based on 2025 estimates,” Zekauskas said. “We think that the Seed company is selling currently at about 13.5x EBITDA and the Crop Chemical company is trading at 4x EBITDA based on 2026 forecasts.” “We think that a more normal trading multiple for Corteva’s crop chemical EBITDA would be closer to 9x-10x or at a premium to FMC,” he added. ( Learn the best 2026 strategies from inside the NYSE with Josh Brown and others at CNBC PRO Live. Tickets and info here . )
