Compass Minerals International (NYSE:CMP) Sets New 1-Year High – Still a Buy?

Shares of Compass Minerals International, Inc. (NYSE:CMP) hit a new 52-week high during trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $31.02 and last traded at $29.6280, with a volume of 115212 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $29.26.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have recently weighed in on CMP shares. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Compass Minerals International from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, May 4th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Compass Minerals International from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Compass Minerals International in a report on Monday, April 20th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and an average price target of $22.00.

Compass Minerals International Stock Performance

The business has a 50-day moving average of $24.51 and a two-hundred day moving average of $22.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.60, a current ratio of 2.06 and a quick ratio of 1.34. The company has a market cap of $1.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 191.93 and a beta of 1.18.

Compass Minerals International (NYSE:CMP) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The basic materials company reported $0.63 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.59 by $0.04. Compass Minerals International had a net margin of 0.55% and a return on equity of 8.99%. The business had revenue of $453.20 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $418.97 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.63 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 8.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Compass Minerals International, Inc. will post 0.89 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Compass Minerals International

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. State of Alaska Department of Revenue purchased a new stake in shares of Compass Minerals International during the 3rd quarter valued at $31,000. Comerica Bank boosted its stake in Compass Minerals International by 80.0% in the 4th quarter. Comerica Bank now owns 1,868 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $37,000 after purchasing an additional 830 shares in the last quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp boosted its stake in Compass Minerals International by 6,266.7% in the 1st quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 1,719 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 1,692 shares in the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Compass Minerals International by 94.4% in the first quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 2,216 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $52,000 after buying an additional 1,076 shares during the last quarter. Finally, New York State Teachers Retirement System purchased a new stake in shares of Compass Minerals International during the third quarter valued at $60,000. 99.78% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Compass Minerals International

Compass Minerals International, Inc is a global producer of essential mineral-based products, primarily known for its salt and plant nutrition portfolios. The company’s deicing salts are used by municipalities and commercial customers across North America to maintain safer roadways in winter months. In addition, its water conditioning salts serve both residential and industrial users, supporting water treatment systems that remove hard minerals to protect plumbing and equipment.

Beyond conventional salt products, Compass Minerals has developed a specialty plant nutrition business focused on sulfate of potash (SOP), a premium fertilizer that provides both potassium and sulfur to crops.