Insider Selling: CF Industries (NYSE:CF) SVP Sells $427,089.00 in Stock

CF Industries Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:CF) SVP Michael Patrick Mcgrane sold 3,666 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $116.50, for a total value of $427,089.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president owned 19,161 shares in the company, valued at $2,232,256.50. The trade was a 16.06% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link.

Michael Patrick Mcgrane also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Tuesday, March 3rd, Michael Patrick Mcgrane sold 2,766 shares of CF Industries stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $105.36, for a total transaction of $291,425.76.

CF Industries Trading Up 9.1%

CF stock opened at $120.07 on Thursday. CF Industries Holdings, Inc. has a twelve month low of $67.34 and a twelve month high of $121.80. The stock has a market capitalization of $18.45 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.34 and a beta of 0.68. The company has a quick ratio of 2.93, a current ratio of 3.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $93.59 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $86.95.

CF Industries (NYSE:CF) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 18th. The basic materials company reported $2.59 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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 firm had revenue of $1.87 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.78 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.89 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 22.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts anticipate that CF Industries Holdings, Inc. 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. Investors of record on Friday, February 13th were given a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 13th. CF Industries’s dividend payout ratio is 22.22%.

Trending Headlines about CF Industries

Here are the key news stories impacting CF Industries this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Geopolitical-driven demand boost: Coverage says the Iran conflict is tightening global fertilizer markets and lifting near-term demand/pricing for major fertilizer producers, which benefits CF’s ammonia and urea businesses. The Iran war is boosting this farming stock
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst support: Several brokers have lifted price targets recently (Barclays raised its target to $120; other shops nudged targets higher), providing a favorable research backdrop that can amplify buying on positive sector news. CF Industries stock page (MarketBeat)
• Positive Sentiment: Fundamentals and payout: Recent quarterly results showed revenue and EPS beats and CF pays a modest dividend (annualized $2.00, ~1.8% yield), supporting the bull case that higher fertilizer prices feed through to earnings. CF Industries stock page (MarketBeat)
• Neutral Sentiment: Institutional/hedge fund activity: Reporting shows some hedge funds and institutions adjusting positions in CF; institutional ownership remains very high, which can mute volatility as positions are large and long-term. Hedge fund and insider trading news (InsiderMonkey)
• Negative Sentiment: Significant insider selling this week: Multiple officers (EVP, several VPs and SVPs) disclosed sales adding up to roughly $4.2M in proceeds across filings; repeated executive sales are being parsed by the market as potential portfolio diversification or a cautious signal. Insider selling alerts (InsiderTrades)

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the company. BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on CF Industries from $110.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, February 20th. Mizuho set a $95.00 price target on CF Industries in a research note on Thursday, February 19th. Scotiabank boosted their price objective on CF Industries from $82.00 to $85.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Monday, February 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on CF Industries from $80.00 to $94.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, February 20th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on CF Industries from $100.00 to $113.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 20th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $96.87.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On CF Industries

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Corient Private Wealth LLC raised its stake in shares of CF Industries by 23.7% during the fourth quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 26,623 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $2,059,000 after acquiring an additional 5,100 shares in the last quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd grew its stake in CF Industries by 18,480.0% in the fourth quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 929 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $72,000 after purchasing an additional 924 shares in the last quarter. MidFirst Bank bought a new position in CF Industries in the fourth quarter worth approximately $101,000. SG Trading Solutions LLC purchased a new position in CF Industries during the 4th quarter worth $1,440,000. Finally, Kera Capital Partners Inc. increased its holdings in CF Industries by 115.1% during the 4th quarter. Kera Capital Partners Inc. now owns 5,987 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $463,000 after purchasing an additional 3,204 shares during the period. 93.06% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.