Groupama Asset Managment Acquires New Holdings in CF Industries Holdings, Inc. $CF

Groupama Asset Managment bought a new stake in CF Industries Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:CF) in the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 10,563 shares of the basic materials company’s stock, valued at approximately $948,000.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Ensign Peak Advisors Inc lifted its stake in shares of CF Industries by 24.4% in the 2nd quarter. Ensign Peak Advisors Inc now owns 95,289 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $8,767,000 after purchasing an additional 18,666 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its position in CF Industries by 11.5% during the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 232,647 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $20,868,000 after buying an additional 23,942 shares during the last quarter. Assetmark Inc. raised its holdings in CF Industries by 878.2% during the third quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 17,941 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $1,609,000 after buying an additional 16,107 shares in the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp raised its holdings in CF Industries by 19.8% during the third quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 369,321 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $33,128,000 after buying an additional 61,140 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Inspire Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of CF Industries in the third quarter worth about $677,000. 93.06% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have recently issued reports on CF shares. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on CF Industries from $100.00 to $113.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 20th. Bank of America boosted their target price on CF Industries from $86.00 to $103.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a report on Wednesday. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $103.00 target price on shares of CF Industries in a research report on Friday, February 20th. BNP Paribas Exane increased their price target on CF Industries from $90.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, February 23rd. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of CF Industries from $86.00 to $97.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 24th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have assigned a Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $101.73.

CF Industries Trading Down 0.6%

Shares of CF opened at $124.82 on Friday. CF Industries Holdings, Inc. has a 12-month low of $67.34 and a 12-month high of $137.44. 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 has a market capitalization of $19.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.87 and a beta of 0.68. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $100.18 and its 200 day moving average price is $88.91.

CF Industries (NYSE:CF) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 18th. The basic materials company reported $2.59 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.53 by $0.06. CF Industries had a return on equity of 19.84% and a net margin of 20.54%.The company had revenue of $1.87 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.78 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.89 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 22.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts predict that CF Industries Holdings, Inc. will post 5.83 earnings per share for the current year.

CF Industries Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced 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 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 13th. CF Industries’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 22.22%.

Insider Transactions at CF Industries

In other CF Industries news, EVP Susan L. Menzel sold 18,041 shares of CF Industries stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $136.06, for a total transaction of $2,454,658.46. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 55,762 shares in the company, valued at $7,586,977.72. The trade was a 24.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, VP Richard A. Hoker sold 6,184 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $109.33, for a total transaction of $676,096.72. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president directly owned 34,535 shares in the company, valued at $3,775,711.55. This trade represents a 15.19% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 82,408 shares of company stock valued at $9,971,298 in the last ninety days. 0.42% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Trending Headlines about CF Industries

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

• Positive Sentiment: Middle East supply disruptions (Strait of Hormuz) have tightened global nitrogen/urea flows, lifting prices and benefiting CF as a low?cost North American producer — a key driver of the strong YTD performance. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Sell?side bullishness: BMO and Bank of America have published favorable notes and higher targets, reinforcing near?term upside expectations tied to the fertilizer rally. Read More. | Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Momentum/earnings context: CF has rallied strongly since its last report (+26% in one note), but further gains depend on how persistent fertilizer prices remain versus margins and capex. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Macro backdrop: hotter PPI could support commodity prices (helpful for fertilizer producers) but also raises input?cost and rate risks; impact on CF depends on persistent pricing vs. cost pressures. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Regulatory/legal risk: reporting of a DOJ probe into fertilizer markets adds uncertainty and could cap valuation expansion even as fundamentals improve. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Broker caution: Mizuho reiterated an “Underperform” with a ~$100 target, signaling some analysts view the rally as stretched and creating downward pressure. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Insider selling: several executives disclosed sales on March 17 (EVP Bert Frost, VPs including Erik Mayer and Richard Hoker). Multiple filings can be read as profit?taking and may weigh on near?term sentiment. Read More.

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.