CF Industries (NYSE:CF) Shares Gap Down on Analyst Downgrade

CF Industries Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:CF)’s share price gapped down before the market opened on Monday after BNP Paribas Exane lowered their price target on the stock from $140.00 to $120.00. The stock had previously closed at $109.48, but opened at $103.31. BNP Paribas Exane currently has a neutral rating on the stock. CF Industries shares last traded at $105.9820, with a volume of 526,266 shares traded.

CF has been the subject of a number of other research reports. Scotiabank raised their price objective on shares of CF Industries from $115.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Monday, May 11th. Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce increased their target price on CF Industries from $118.00 to $128.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on CF Industries from $115.00 to $140.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 18th. Berenberg Bank upped their price objective on CF Industries from $86.00 to $106.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, May 28th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded CF Industries from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, April 11th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have assigned a Buy rating, ten have assigned a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $117.75.

Insider Transactions at CF Industries

In related news, VP Richard A. Hoker sold 3,499 shares of CF Industries stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $125.38, for a total transaction of $438,704.62. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president directly owned 31,036 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,891,293.68. The trade was a 10.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, VP Erik M. Mayer sold 1,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $124.69, for a total value of $187,035.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president directly owned 6,341 shares in the company, valued at $790,659.29. This trade represents a 19.13% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 10,999 shares of company stock valued at $1,381,740 in the last quarter. 0.51% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On CF Industries

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Himension Capital Singapore PTE. LTD. purchased a new position in CF Industries during the 1st quarter valued at about $25,000. Altshuler Shaham Ltd grew its position in shares of CF Industries by 36.6% in the first quarter. Altshuler Shaham Ltd now owns 418 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $54,000 after purchasing an additional 112 shares during the last quarter. Stance Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of CF Industries during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $42,000. MUFG Securities EMEA plc purchased a new position in shares of CF Industries during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $44,000. Finally, Hantz Financial Services Inc. raised its position in shares of CF Industries by 46.3% during the 4th quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 493 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 156 shares during the last quarter. 93.06% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

CF Industries Trading Down 3.1%

The business has a 50 day moving average of $120.54 and a 200-day moving average of $103.84. The stock has a market cap of $16.29 billion, a PE ratio of 9.53 and a beta of 0.38. The company has a current ratio of 3.54, a quick ratio of 3.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39.

CF Industries (NYSE:CF) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The basic materials company reported $3.98 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.63 by $1.35. CF Industries had a return on equity of 20.93% and a net margin of 23.73%.The company had revenue of $1.99 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.84 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.85 earnings per share. CF Industries’s revenue was up 19.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts anticipate that CF Industries Holdings, Inc. will post 15.84 EPS for the current year.

CF Industries Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 29th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 15th were issued a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.9%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 15th. CF Industries’s dividend payout ratio is 17.97%.

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.