E I Du Pont De Nemours And Co (DD), Monsanto Company (MON), Syngenta AG (ADR) (SYT): This Company Loves You…Should You Love It Back?

Time to change partners?

Monsanto Company (NYSE:MON) reported third quarter results affirming its guidance for 20% plus earnings growth. This makes its third year of earnings growth and is guiding 14% for 2014. Monsanto operates in two segments: Seeds & Genomics and Agricultural Productivity. Sales for both were up in the first nine months of its fiscal year.

Syngenta AG (ADR) (NYSE:SYT) is interesting as it gets little press or analyst coverage. Only four analysts cover Syngenta AG (ADR) (NYSE:SYT) (2:30 a.m. EST conference calls are probably a factor) with a median price target of $83.02.  It offers a 2.10% yield, (higher than Monsanto), and at a 36% payout ratio like E I Du Pont De Nemours And Co (NYSE:DD).

Like Monsanto, the Basel, Switzerland headquartered company is a pure agriculture play. Its sole focus is on products to enhance global crop yields and food quality. Three year dividend growth, while not as robust as Monsanto, is still a healthy 17%.

One advantage over Monsanto Company (NYSE:MON) is less headline risk, as pointed out by fellow Fool Mathew Frankel, noting the company was honored by the Dow Jones Sustainability Index as an environmentally responsible chemical company. Unless you’ve been hiding in a fallout shelter, you are probably aware Monsanto has been in the headlines for its GMO seed traits and pesticides. DuPont has managed to skirt most of this unfavorable press. Like DuPont, Syngenta AG (ADR) (NYSE:SYT) has purchased an African seed company, (MRI Seeds of Zambia), in an effort to expand its reach into emerging markets.

So choose an ag already

According to Syngenta AG (ADR) (NYSE:SYT) CEO Michael Mack, “There is broad acceptance of the need to double global crop production by 2050 in order to meet rising demand from population growth, dietary change and biofuels.”

DuPont is a buy if you believe it will sell off Performance Chemicals (and possibly Electronic and Safety Protection). If you really loved your shareholders, you would do it, DuPont.

Monsanto has many good qualities: better growth, rising yield, and a global agriculture focus. Headline risk casts it as the bad boy of this investing triangle.

The article This Company Loves You…Should You Love It Back? originally appeared on Fool.com and is written by AnnaLisa Kraft.

AnnaLisa Kraft has no position in any stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has no position in any of the stocks mentioned.

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