Barclays Boosts CF Industries (NYSE:CF) Price Target to $130.00

Key Points

• Barclays raised its price target on CF Industries to $130 (from $120) and maintained an overweight rating, implying roughly a 7.74% upside from the then-current price.
• Analyst views are mixed: the consensus remains a Hold with a $114.87 target, although some firms (e.g., Morgan Stanley) have higher targets while others range from Buy to Underperform.
• CF beat the quarter (EPS $2.59 vs. $2.53 expected; revenue $1.87B, +22.8% YoY) and analysts forecast $5.83 EPS for the year, while insiders sold about 82,408 shares (~$9.97M) in the latest quarter.

CF Industries (NYSE:CF - Get Free Report) had its price objective raised by Barclays from $120.00 to $130.00 in a report released on Thursday,MarketScreener reports. The firm presently has an "overweight" rating on the basic materials company's stock. Barclays's price target indicates a potential upside of 7.74% from the stock's current price.

CF has been the subject of several other reports. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on CF Industries from $95.00 to $135.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 8th. Wall Street Zen raised CF Industries from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, April 11th. Weiss Ratings upgraded CF Industries from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research report on Friday, March 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on CF Industries from $80.00 to $94.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, February 20th. Finally, Mizuho increased their price objective on shares of CF Industries from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock an "underperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 31st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have issued a Buy rating, eleven have issued a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $114.87.

CF Industries Trading Up 1.4%

CF stock opened at $120.66 on Thursday. CF Industries has a 52 week low of $73.32 and a 52 week high of $141.96. The company has a market capitalization of $18.54 billion, a PE ratio of 13.41 and a beta of 0.52. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $113.77 and its 200 day simple moving average is $94.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41, a quick ratio of 2.93 and a current ratio of 3.37.

CF Industries (NYSE:CF - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 18th. The basic materials company reported $2.59 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.53 by $0.06. CF Industries had a net margin of 20.54% and a return on equity of 19.84%. The business had revenue of $1.87 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.78 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.89 EPS. The business's revenue was up 22.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that CF Industries will post 5.83 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at CF Industries

In related news, EVP Susan L. Menzel sold 18,041 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $136.06, for a total value of $2,454,658.46. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 55,762 shares in the company, valued at $7,586,977.72. This represents a 24.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Bert A. Frost sold 10,000 shares of CF Industries stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $119.01, for a total value of $1,190,100.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 87,256 shares in the company, valued at $10,384,336.56. The trade was a 10.28% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 82,408 shares of company stock valued at $9,971,298. Insiders own 0.51% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On CF Industries

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Lakewood Asset Management LLC increased its stake in CF Industries by 0.9% during the 4th quarter. Lakewood Asset Management LLC now owns 12,371 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $957,000 after buying an additional 111 shares during the period. Farther Finance Advisors LLC boosted its position in CF Industries by 5.2% in the 4th quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 2,365 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $183,000 after buying an additional 116 shares during the period. Blair William & Co. IL grew its stake in shares of CF Industries by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. Blair William & Co. IL now owns 17,528 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $1,356,000 after acquiring an additional 116 shares in the last quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. grew its stake in shares of CF Industries by 78.0% in the third quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 292 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 128 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Kingsview Wealth Management LLC increased its position in shares of CF Industries by 4.9% during the third quarter. Kingsview Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,898 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $260,000 after acquiring an additional 135 shares during the period. 93.06% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.

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