CF Industries Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:CF) Receives Average Rating of “Hold” from Brokerages

CF Industries Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:CF) has been assigned an average recommendation of “Hold” from the sixteen research firms that are covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 1 year price objective among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $85.00.

CF has been the topic of several recent research reports. Wolfe Research began coverage on shares of CF Industries in a research note on Friday, March 1st. They set an “outperform” rating and a $99.00 target price on the stock. Bank of America reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $88.00 price objective (down from $96.00) on shares of CF Industries in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. Berenberg Bank upped their price target on CF Industries from $68.00 to $69.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 17th. Scotiabank decreased their price objective on CF Industries from $86.00 to $80.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, May 6th. Finally, Piper Sandler cut their target price on shares of CF Industries from $82.00 to $75.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, May 7th.

CF Industries Trading Up 1.0 %

Shares of CF Industries stock opened at $76.23 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 3.94, a quick ratio of 3.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $76.75 and its 200 day moving average price is $78.66. The firm has a market capitalization of $13.93 billion, a PE ratio of 12.66, a P/E/G ratio of 2.39 and a beta of 1.00. CF Industries has a twelve month low of $67.59 and a twelve month high of $87.90.

CF Industries (NYSE:CF) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 1st. The basic materials company reported $1.03 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.47 by ($0.44). CF Industries had a net margin of 19.03% and a return on equity of 14.08%. The company had revenue of $1.47 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.46 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.85 EPS. CF Industries’s revenue for the quarter was down 26.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts predict that CF Industries will post 5.26 EPS for the current fiscal year.

CF Industries Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 31st. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 15th were issued a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.62%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, May 14th. CF Industries’s payout ratio is 33.22%.

Institutional Trading of CF Industries

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in CF. Pacer Advisors Inc. increased its position in CF Industries by 7.1% during the fourth quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 3,078,652 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $244,753,000 after buying an additional 204,536 shares during the last quarter. Boston Partners grew its stake in shares of CF Industries by 37.5% in the first quarter. Boston Partners now owns 3,063,854 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $254,920,000 after acquiring an additional 835,557 shares during the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP boosted its holdings in CF Industries by 16.5% in the 4th quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 2,928,039 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $232,779,000 after purchasing an additional 414,785 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its stake in shares of CF Industries by 7.7% in the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,862,532 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $227,576,000 after buying an additional 203,885 shares during the period. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new position in CF Industries in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $193,145,000. 93.06% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

CF Industries Company Profile

CF Industries Holdings, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the manufacture and sale of hydrogen and nitrogen products for energy, fertilizer, emissions abatement, and other industrial activities in North America, Europe, and internationally. It operates through Ammonia, Granular Urea, UAN, AN, and Other segments.