Piper Jaffray Maintains Overweight on Monsanto (MON)

Piper Jaffray is out with its report today on Monsanto MON, maintaining Overweight and a $95 PT. In a note to clients, Piper Jaffray writes, "We maintain our Overweight rating and $95 price target on shares of MON following the completion of registration for RIB with the EPA, which fulfills the remainder of regulatory requirements and sets the stage for a 2012 launch. We called a dozen growers and dealers to ask about the RIB offering; based on these conversations we believe that RIB will have rapid and widespread adoption owing to its simplicity in planting and boost in productivity. We have more confidence in our $3.50 EPS estimate for FY12, as we believe rapid adoption of RIB will increase traction of the reduced refuge family of products, help lift prices, and drive share gains." Shares of MON closed Monday at $67.17, up 1.43% from Friday's close.