Traders Purchase Large Volume of CF Industries Call Options (NYSE:CF)

CF Industries Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:CF) was the recipient of unusually large options trading on Thursday. Investors purchased 8,741 call options on the company. This is an increase of approximately 37% compared to the typical volume of 6,360 call options.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Bert A. Frost sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $119.01, for a total transaction of $1,190,100.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 87,256 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,384,336.56. This represents a 10.28% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Susan L. Menzel sold 18,041 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $136.06, for a total transaction of $2,454,658.46. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 55,762 shares in the company, valued at $7,586,977.72. The trade was a 24.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last three months, insiders have sold 82,408 shares of company stock worth $9,971,298. 0.42% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of CF Industries

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. raised its stake in shares of CF Industries by 78.0% in the third quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 292 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 128 shares in the last quarter. True Wealth Design LLC boosted its stake in CF Industries by 396.2% during the third quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 387 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 309 shares in the last quarter. Eastern Bank bought a new stake in CF Industries in the 3rd quarter valued at $35,000. Hantz Financial Services Inc. increased its holdings in CF Industries by 46.3% in the 4th quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 493 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $38,000 after buying an additional 156 shares during the period. Finally, Peterson Wealth Services raised its stake in shares of CF Industries by 451.3% in the 3rd quarter. Peterson Wealth Services now owns 441 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $40,000 after buying an additional 361 shares in the last quarter. 93.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Bank of America upped their price target on shares of CF Industries from $86.00 to $103.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 18th. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $103.00 price objective on shares of CF Industries in a research report on Friday, February 20th. Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce increased their target price on CF Industries from $100.00 to $118.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 17th. Rothschild & Co Redburn set a $72.00 target price on CF Industries in a report on Wednesday, February 4th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on CF Industries from $100.00 to $113.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 20th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have issued a Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $104.60.

CF Industries Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:CF traded up $3.65 on Thursday, hitting $131.76. 1,503,077 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,052,617. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $102.72 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $89.77. CF Industries has a one year low of $67.34 and a one year high of $137.44. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41, a quick ratio of 2.93 and a current ratio of 3.37. The firm has a market capitalization of $20.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.73 and a beta of 0.68.

CF Industries (NYSE:CF) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 18th. The basic materials company reported $2.59 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.53 by $0.06. CF Industries had a net margin of 20.54% and a return on equity of 19.84%. The business had revenue of $1.87 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.78 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.89 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 22.8% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts expect that CF Industries will post 5.83 earnings per share for the current year.

CF Industries Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 27th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 13th were given a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 13th. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.5%. CF Industries’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 22.22%.

About CF Industries

CF Industries Holdings, Inc is a leading global manufacturer of hydrogen and nitrogen products for agricultural and industrial customers. The company specializes in the production of ammonia, granular urea, urea ammonium nitrate (UAN), nitric acid and ammonium nitrate, which serve as key inputs for fertilizer blends, industrial chemicals and other downstream applications.

Headquartered in Deerfield, Illinois, CF Industries operates production facilities and distribution terminals across North America and the United Kingdom.