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

Shares of CF Industries Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:CF) have been given a consensus recommendation of “Hold” by the twelve analysts that are covering the company, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 12 month price target among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $88.42.

A number of research firms recently commented on CF. Mizuho boosted their price target on CF Industries from $76.00 to $93.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of CF Industries from $88.00 to $92.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 24th. BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on CF Industries from $95.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, August 9th. Redburn Atlantic assumed coverage on CF Industries in a report on Friday, October 18th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $77.00 target price on the stock. Finally, UBS Group upped their price objective on CF Industries from $80.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, August 26th.

CF Industries Stock Down 0.9 %

Shares of CF stock opened at $89.79 on Friday. CF Industries has a 52-week low of $69.13 and a 52-week high of $91.06. The stock has a market cap of $15.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.21, a PEG ratio of 2.39 and a beta of 0.97. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $85.25 and its 200-day moving average is $79.33. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38, a quick ratio of 2.52 and a current ratio of 2.81.

CF Industries (NYSE:CF) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The basic materials company reported $1.55 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.05 by $0.50. CF Industries had a return on equity of 14.57% and a net margin of 19.45%. The business had revenue of $1.37 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.28 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.85 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 7.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts predict that CF Industries will post 6.32 EPS for the current year.

CF Industries Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 29th. Investors of record on Friday, November 15th will be issued a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 15th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.23%. CF Industries’s payout ratio is 31.65%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Bert A. Frost sold 3,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $88.00, for a total transaction of $264,000.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 103,155 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,077,640. This represents a 2.83 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, VP Ashraf K. Malik sold 7,201 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, October 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $90.02, for a total value of $648,234.02. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 29,211 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,629,574.22. This represents a 19.78 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 19,201 shares of company stock worth $1,727,694. Company insiders own 0.42% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of CF Industries

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of CF. Wolff Wiese Magana LLC purchased a new stake in shares of CF Industries in the third quarter worth approximately $28,000. Brooklyn Investment Group purchased a new stake in CF Industries in the 3rd quarter valued at $39,000. Quent Capital LLC lifted its stake in CF Industries by 132.1% during the 3rd quarter. Quent Capital LLC now owns 499 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $43,000 after acquiring an additional 284 shares in the last quarter. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in CF Industries by 262.6% during the 3rd quarter. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC now owns 660 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $57,000 after acquiring an additional 478 shares during the last quarter. Finally, UMB Bank n.a. grew its stake in shares of CF Industries by 40.4% in the 2nd quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 664 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $49,000 after acquiring an additional 191 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 93.06% of the company’s stock.

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.