CF Industries Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:CF) Stock Rated “Hold” by Sell-Side Analysts

CF Industries Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:CF) has been given an average recommendation of “Hold” by the twenty-three ratings firms that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have given a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price objective among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $121.94.

A number of equities analysts recently commented on CF shares. set a $115.00 price objective on shares of CF Industries and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Monday, October 5th. Rothschild & Co Redburn raised CF Industries from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and increased their target price for the company from $98.00 to $110.00 in a research report on Monday, September 28th. Weiss Ratings upgraded CF Industries from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 16th. Wall Street Zen lowered CF Industries from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, July 18th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein initiated coverage on CF Industries in a research report on Friday, September 25th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $162.00 price target for the company.

CF Industries Trading Down 1.5%

NYSE:CF opened at $118.07 on Friday. CF Industries has a one year low of $75.42 and a one year high of $141.96. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a quick ratio of 4.32 and a current ratio of 4.86. The firm has a market cap of $17.87 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.75, a P/E/G ratio of 0.24 and a beta of 0.53. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $123.52 and a 200-day simple moving average of $115.74.

CF Industries (NYSE:CF) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The basic materials company reported $4.73 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $5.63 by ($0.90). CF Industries had a return on equity of 24.41% and a net margin of 27.12%. The business had revenue of $2.22 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.45 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.37 EPS. CF Industries’s revenue for the quarter was up 17.6% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts anticipate that CF Industries will post 13.68 EPS for the current fiscal year.

CF Industries Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 16th will be paid a $0.60 dividend. This represents a $2.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.0%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 16th. CF Industries’s payout ratio is 17.79%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On CF Industries

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. MBA Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of CF Industries by 5.4% during the 3rd quarter. MBA Advisors LLC now owns 2,539 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $292,000 after acquiring an additional 131 shares in the last quarter. Woodmont Investment Counsel LLC acquired a new stake in CF Industries in the third quarter valued at approximately $278,000. Traynor Capital Management Inc. purchased a new position in CF Industries in the third quarter worth $202,000. Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich grew its holdings in CF Industries by 21.9% in the third quarter. Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich now owns 15,642 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $1,802,000 after purchasing an additional 2,811 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. purchased a new position in CF Industries in the third quarter worth $11,120,000. 93.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

CF Industries Company Profile

CF Industries Holdings, Inc is a global manufacturer of hydrogen and nitrogen products. The company produces ammonia, granular urea, urea ammonium nitrate, ammonium nitrate and nitric acid, which are used primarily in agricultural fertilizers and a range of industrial applications. CF Industries also supplies products such as diesel exhaust fluid and other nitrogen-based solutions.

The company serves agricultural and industrial customers in North America and internationally. Its manufacturing and distribution operations include facilities in the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom, supported by an extensive logistics and distribution network.