CF Industries (NYSE:CF) Stock Price Up 4.3% – Still a Buy?

CF Industries Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:CF) shares traded up 4.3% on Monday . The stock traded as high as $132.00 and last traded at $131.23. Approximately 282,553 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 92% from the average daily volume of 3,352,337 shares. The stock had previously closed at $125.79.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

CF has been the topic of several analyst reports. Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce restated a “neutral” rating and set a $129.00 price target on shares of CF Industries in a research note on Friday, July 24th. Weiss Ratings lowered CF Industries from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Friday, August 21st. 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 research report on Tuesday, July 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on CF Industries from $94.00 to $115.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, June 3rd. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded CF Industries from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, July 18th. Two 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 issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, CF Industries presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $116.56.

CF Industries Stock Up 1.5%

The business’s 50 day moving average is $118.18 and its 200-day moving average is $117.03. 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 capitalization of $19.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.46, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.25 and a beta of 0.39.

CF Industries (NYSE:CF) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The basic materials company reported $4.73 EPS 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 firm had revenue of $2.22 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.45 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $2.37 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 17.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts anticipate that CF Industries Holdings, Inc. will post 13.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

CF Industries Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 14th will be paid a $0.60 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 14th. This is a boost from CF Industries’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. This represents a $2.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.9%. CF Industries’s dividend payout ratio is presently 17.79%.

Institutional Trading of CF Industries

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Fideuram Intesa Sanpaolo Private Banking S.P.A. bought a new position in shares of CF Industries during the 4th quarter valued at about $11,556,000. Twin Capital Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of CF Industries in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $714,000. Teamwork Financial Advisors LLC bought a new stake in CF Industries during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $10,108,000. S&CO Inc. acquired a new stake in CF Industries during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $2,630,000. Finally, Burford Brothers Inc. acquired a new stake in CF Industries during the 4th quarter worth approximately $960,000. Institutional investors own 93.06% of the company’s stock.

CF Industries Company Profile

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.