CF Industries Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:CF) Receives Consensus Recommendation of "Hold" from Analysts

Key Points

• CF Industries Holdings, Inc. has received a consensus rating of "Hold" from 16 analysts, with an average target price of $95.71.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.50 per share, with a yield of 2.2%, which will be paid on August 29th.
• CF Industries also initiated a $2 billion stock buyback program to repurchase up to 14.7% of its shares, indicating management believes the stock is undervalued.

Shares of CF Industries Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:CF - Get Free Report) have received an average rating of "Hold" from the sixteen ratings firms that are covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. Twelve research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, three have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. The average 1 year target price among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $95.71.

A number of research firms recently commented on CF. Scotiabank upgraded shares of CF Industries from a "sector underperform" rating to a "sector perform" rating and set a $81.00 target price for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. Morgan Stanley set a $95.00 price target on shares of CF Industries and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday, June 26th. Wolfe Research downgraded shares of CF Industries from an "outperform" rating to a "peer perform" rating in a research note on Thursday, June 12th. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $100.00 price objective on shares of CF Industries and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a report on Monday, July 14th. Finally, UBS Group upped their target price on CF Industries from $82.00 to $103.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 23rd.

CF Industries Stock Up 0.2%

CF Industries stock opened at $92.86 on Friday. CF Industries has a twelve month low of $67.34 and a twelve month high of $104.45. The business has a fifty day moving average of $94.07 and a two-hundred day moving average of $85.77. The firm has a market cap of $15.74 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.23 and a beta of 0.96. The company has a quick ratio of 2.22, a current ratio of 2.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41.

CF Industries (NYSE:CF - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The basic materials company reported $1.85 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.47 by $0.38. CF Industries had a net margin of 21.80% and a return on equity of 17.39%. The business had revenue of $1.66 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.53 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.03 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up 13.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts forecast that CF Industries will post 5.83 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

CF Industries Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 29th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 15th. CF Industries's payout ratio is 26.35%.

CF Industries declared that its board has authorized a stock buyback program on Wednesday, May 7th that allows the company to repurchase $2.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the basic materials company to repurchase up to 14.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are usually an indication that the company's management believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling at CF Industries

In other news, EVP Susan L. Menzel sold 10,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $100.23, for a total transaction of $1,002,300.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 87,923 shares in the company, valued at $8,812,522.29. The trade was a 10.21% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.42% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Trust Co. of Toledo NA OH acquired a new stake in shares of CF Industries during the 2nd quarter worth about $26,000. Mizuho Bank Ltd. purchased a new position in CF Industries during the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. Curat Global LLC purchased a new position in CF Industries during the first quarter worth about $25,000. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT acquired a new stake in shares of CF Industries during the first quarter valued at about $27,000. Finally, Golden State Wealth Management LLC increased its position in shares of CF Industries by 119.8% during the first quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 378 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 206 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.06% of the company's stock.

CF Industries Company Profile

CF Industries Holdings, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the manufacture and sale of hydrogen and nitrogen products for energy, fertilizer, emissions abatement, and other industrial activities in North America, Europe, and internationally. It operates through Ammonia, Granular Urea, UAN, AN, and Other segments.

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