CF Industries (NYSE:CF) Sets New 1-Year High - Here's Why

CF Industries Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:CF - Get Free Report) hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Friday . The stock traded as high as $99.14 and last traded at $97.88, with a volume of 295211 shares. The stock had previously closed at $93.83.

Analyst Ratings Changes

CF has been the subject of several analyst reports. Oppenheimer downgraded CF Industries from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on CF Industries from $85.00 to $80.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, April 11th. BNP Paribas upgraded CF Industries to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. Royal Bank of Canada cut their target price on CF Industries from $100.00 to $90.00 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, February 25th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on CF Industries in a research report on Thursday, March 13th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $86.00 target price for the company. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have issued a hold rating, three have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $90.21.

CF Industries Stock Performance

The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $83.41 and its 200-day simple moving average is $84.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39, a quick ratio of 2.52 and a current ratio of 3.08. The company has a market capitalization of $16.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.76, a P/E/G ratio of 0.37 and a beta of 0.97.

CF Industries (NYSE:CF - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The basic materials company reported $1.85 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.47 by $0.38. CF Industries had a net margin of 20.52% and a return on equity of 15.50%. The company had revenue of $1.66 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.53 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.03 EPS. The company's revenue was up 13.1% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts expect that CF Industries Holdings, Inc. will post 5.83 EPS for the current year.

CF Industries Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 30th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 15th were paid a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.00%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, May 15th. CF Industries's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 26.35%.

CF Industries declared that its board has approved a stock repurchase plan on Wednesday, May 7th that authorizes the company to buyback $2.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the basic materials company to purchase up to 14.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are often an indication that the company's leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On CF Industries

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Checchi Capital Advisers LLC grew its holdings in shares of CF Industries by 4.3% during the 4th quarter. Checchi Capital Advisers LLC now owns 2,592 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $221,000 after acquiring an additional 108 shares in the last quarter. Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV grew its holdings in shares of CF Industries by 1.3% during the 1st quarter. Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV now owns 8,727 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $682,000 after acquiring an additional 116 shares in the last quarter. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of CF Industries by 2.1% during the 4th quarter. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. now owns 5,805 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $495,000 after acquiring an additional 120 shares in the last quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of CF Industries by 1.8% during the 4th quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. now owns 7,050 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $602,000 after acquiring an additional 126 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Coldstream Capital Management Inc. boosted its holdings in CF Industries by 4.4% in the fourth quarter. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. now owns 3,009 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $257,000 after purchasing an additional 126 shares in the last quarter. 93.06% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.