Cleveland-Cliffs (NYSE:CLF) Shares Up 5.4% – Still a Buy?

Cleveland-Cliffs Inc. (NYSE:CLF) was up 5.4% during mid-day trading on Monday . The company traded as high as $9.90 and last traded at $9.9050. 4,605,847 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 75% from the average daily volume of 18,327,518 shares. The stock had previously closed at $9.40.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. Barclays initiated coverage on Cleveland-Cliffs in a research report on Thursday, May 21st. They set an “underweight” rating and a $9.00 target price for the company. Glj Research raised shares of Cleveland-Cliffs from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $9.03 to $15.01 in a research note on Tuesday, June 9th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on shares of Cleveland-Cliffs from $14.00 to $9.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday. The Goldman Sachs Group restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $10.00 price target on shares of Cleveland-Cliffs in a report on Friday, May 1st. Finally, Citigroup lowered their price target on shares of Cleveland-Cliffs from $11.00 to $10.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, July 7th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Cleveland-Cliffs presently has an average rating of “Reduce” and an average price target of $11.80.

Cleveland-Cliffs Trading Up 4.2%

The company has a current ratio of 2.02, a quick ratio of 0.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.59 billion, a P/E ratio of -4.18 and a beta of 2.13. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $11.47 and a 200 day moving average price of $11.27.

Cleveland-Cliffs (NYSE:CLF) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, April 20th. The mining company reported ($0.40) earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.44) by $0.04. Cleveland-Cliffs had a negative return on equity of 15.48% and a negative net margin of 6.42%.The company had revenue of $4.92 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.84 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned ($0.92) earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.3% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts forecast that Cleveland-Cliffs Inc. will post -0.27 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Cleveland-Cliffs

In other news, EVP Celso L. Goncalves, Jr. sold 214,308 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $13.41, for a total value of $2,873,870.28. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 184,542 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,474,708.22. This trade represents a 53.73% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.95% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Cleveland-Cliffs

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Castle Hook Partners LP increased its position in Cleveland-Cliffs by 572.4% during the 4th quarter. Castle Hook Partners LP now owns 18,083,029 shares of the mining company’s stock valued at $240,143,000 after buying an additional 15,393,507 shares in the last quarter. Turiya Advisors Asia Ltd acquired a new stake in Cleveland-Cliffs in the fourth quarter worth about $96,280,000. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Cleveland-Cliffs by 13.4% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 54,391,397 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $722,318,000 after acquiring an additional 6,447,462 shares during the last quarter. Maple Rock Capital Partners Inc. grew its stake in shares of Cleveland-Cliffs by 90.1% during the fourth quarter. Maple Rock Capital Partners Inc. now owns 12,358,230 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $164,117,000 after acquiring an additional 5,855,830 shares during the last quarter. Finally, State Street Corp increased its holdings in shares of Cleveland-Cliffs by 20.2% during the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 27,450,442 shares of the mining company’s stock valued at $208,623,000 after acquiring an additional 4,603,807 shares in the last quarter. 67.68% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Cleveland-Cliffs

Cleveland-Cliffs Inc is a leading North American producer of iron ore pellets and flat-rolled steel products. Tracing its roots to 1847, the company has evolved from an iron-ore mining concern in the Great Lakes region into a fully integrated steelmaker. Today, Cleveland-Cliffs operates iron ore mining complexes in Michigan and Minnesota as well as steelmaking and finishing facilities across the United States.

The company’s integrated platform begins with direct control of key raw materials, including iron ore and scrap, and extends through every stage of steel production.