Cleveland-Cliffs (NYSE:CLF) COO Clifford Smith Sells 200,000 Shares

Cleveland-Cliffs Inc. (NYSE:CLF) COO Clifford Smith sold 200,000 shares of Cleveland-Cliffs stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $10.46, for a total value of $2,092,000.00. Following the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 560,529 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,863,133.34. This trade represents a 26.30% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink.

Cleveland-Cliffs Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:CLF opened at $10.54 on Thursday. Cleveland-Cliffs Inc. has a twelve month low of $5.63 and a twelve month high of $16.70. The company has a current ratio of 1.95, a quick ratio of 0.50 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15. The company has a market cap of $6.01 billion, a PE ratio of -3.61 and a beta of 1.93. The company’s 50 day moving average is $13.25 and its 200 day moving average is $12.26.

Cleveland-Cliffs (NYSE:CLF) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 9th. The mining company reported ($0.43) EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.62) by $0.19. The business had revenue of $4.31 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.60 billion. Cleveland-Cliffs had a negative net margin of 7.91% and a negative return on equity of 18.94%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down .3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned ($0.68) EPS. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Cleveland-Cliffs Inc. will post -0.79 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on CLF shares. Wall Street Zen upgraded Cleveland-Cliffs from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, February 14th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Cleveland-Cliffs in a report on Tuesday, January 27th. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $15.00 price target on shares of Cleveland-Cliffs in a research report on Monday, February 9th. UBS Group set a $15.00 price objective on Cleveland-Cliffs in a research report on Monday, October 27th. Finally, Glj Research dropped their price objective on shares of Cleveland-Cliffs from $9.52 to $9.42 and set a “sell” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, February 10th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $13.89.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Cleveland-Cliffs

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Corient Private Wealth LLC increased its holdings in Cleveland-Cliffs by 35.5% in the 4th quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 24,669 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $321,000 after acquiring an additional 6,467 shares in the last quarter. State of Tennessee Department of Treasury grew its position in shares of Cleveland-Cliffs by 65.9% in the fourth quarter. State of Tennessee Department of Treasury now owns 221,437 shares of the mining company’s stock valued at $3,047,000 after purchasing an additional 87,975 shares during the period. NewEdge Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Cleveland-Cliffs by 3,987.9% during the fourth quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 98,559 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $1,309,000 after purchasing an additional 96,148 shares in the last quarter. XTX Topco Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Cleveland-Cliffs during the 4th quarter worth about $513,000. Finally, Utah Retirement Systems raised its position in shares of Cleveland-Cliffs by 18.0% during the 4th quarter. Utah Retirement Systems now owns 29,725 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $395,000 after purchasing an additional 4,525 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 67.68% of the company’s stock.

Cleveland-Cliffs Company Profile

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.