Empirical Asset Management LLC Takes Position in CF Industries Holdings, Inc. $CF

Empirical Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of CF Industries Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:CF) during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm bought 6,310 shares of the basic materials company’s stock, valued at approximately $683,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Fideuram Intesa Sanpaolo Private Banking S.P.A. acquired a new stake in CF Industries during the 4th quarter valued at $11,556,000. Twin Capital Management Inc. purchased a new stake in CF Industries during the 4th quarter worth $714,000. AIA Group Ltd acquired a new position in CF Industries in the 1st quarter worth $3,428,000. Burford Brothers Inc. acquired a new position in CF Industries in the 4th quarter worth $960,000. Finally, Teamwork Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new position in CF Industries in the 2nd quarter valued at about $10,108,000. 93.06% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

CF Industries Stock Performance

Shares of CF Industries stock opened at $119.70 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $18.12 billion, a PE ratio of 8.87 and a beta of 0.39. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $115.00 and its 200-day simple moving average is $115.16. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a quick ratio of 4.32 and a current ratio of 4.86. CF Industries Holdings, Inc. has a 1 year low of $75.42 and a 1 year high of $141.96.

CF Industries (NYSE:CF) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The basic materials company reported $4.73 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.63 by ($0.90). The firm had revenue of $2.22 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.45 billion. CF Industries had a return on equity of 24.41% and a net margin of 27.12%.The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 17.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.37 earnings per share. Equities analysts forecast that CF Industries Holdings, Inc. will post 13.85 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

CF Industries Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 14th will be issued a dividend of $0.60 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 14th. This represents a $2.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.0%. This is a boost from CF Industries’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. CF Industries’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 17.79%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

CF has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. BMO Capital Markets lowered their target price on CF Industries from $140.00 to $135.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, June 30th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on CF Industries from $135.00 to $115.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, July 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on CF Industries from $94.00 to $115.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 3rd. UBS Group lifted their price objective on CF Industries from $115.00 to $123.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, August 7th. Finally, HSBC cut their target price on CF Industries from $130.00 to $121.00 in a research report on Wednesday, June 17th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have given a Buy rating, ten have issued a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $116.56.

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.