Cleveland-Cliffs (NYSE:CLF) Trading 5.4% Higher - Still a Buy?

Key Points

• Cleveland-Cliffs shares rose 5.4% on Monday, trading as high as $9.90, though volume was well below average at about 4.6 million shares.
• Analyst sentiment remains cautious: most firms rate the stock a Hold/Neutral, with a consensus rating of Reduce and an average price target of $11.80.
• The company recently beat quarterly EPS and revenue estimates, but it still posted a loss and management/insider activity has included a significant share sale by an executive in June.

Cleveland-Cliffs Inc. (NYSE:CLF - Get Free Report) shares shot up 5.4% on Monday . The stock traded as high as $9.90 and last traded at $9.9050. 4,605,847 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 75% from the average daily volume of 18,327,518 shares. The stock had previously closed at $9.40.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

CLF has been the subject of several research reports. Morgan Stanley reissued an "equal weight" rating and set a $12.50 price objective (up from $12.00) on shares of Cleveland-Cliffs in a report on Monday, June 22nd. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and issued a $10.00 target price on shares of Cleveland-Cliffs in a report on Friday, May 1st. KeyCorp began coverage on Cleveland-Cliffs in a research report on Wednesday, March 25th. They issued a "sector weight" rating on the stock. Citigroup dropped their price target on Cleveland-Cliffs from $11.00 to $10.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, July 7th. Finally, Glj Research raised Cleveland-Cliffs from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $9.03 to $15.01 in a research note on Tuesday, June 9th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Cleveland-Cliffs presently has a consensus rating of "Reduce" and an average target price of $11.80.

Cleveland-Cliffs Stock Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $5.59 billion, a PE ratio of -4.18 and a beta of 2.13. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $11.47 and a 200-day simple moving average of $11.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29, a current ratio of 2.02 and a quick ratio of 0.64.

Cleveland-Cliffs (NYSE:CLF - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, April 20th. The mining company reported ($0.40) earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.44) by $0.04. Cleveland-Cliffs had a negative return on equity of 15.48% and a negative net margin of 6.42%.The company had revenue of $4.92 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.84 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted ($0.92) EPS. Cleveland-Cliffs's quarterly revenue was up 6.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts expect that Cleveland-Cliffs Inc. will post -0.27 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Cleveland-Cliffs

In related news, EVP Celso L. Goncalves, Jr. sold 214,308 shares of Cleveland-Cliffs stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $13.41, for a total transaction of $2,873,870.28. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 184,542 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,474,708.22. The trade was a 53.73% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.95% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of CLF. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. boosted its holdings in Cleveland-Cliffs by 208.2% during the 2nd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 6,021,829 shares of the mining company's stock valued at $56,545,000 after acquiring an additional 4,067,994 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its stake in shares of Cleveland-Cliffs by 60.0% during the second quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 12,149 shares of the mining company's stock valued at $114,000 after purchasing an additional 4,557 shares during the period. Moody National Bank Trust Division bought a new position in shares of Cleveland-Cliffs in the second quarter worth about $545,000. Versant Capital Management Inc increased its stake in Cleveland-Cliffs by 24.3% in the 2nd quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 8,243 shares of the mining company's stock worth $77,000 after buying an additional 1,614 shares during the period. Finally, NewEdge Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Cleveland-Cliffs by 25.2% during the 1st quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 123,427 shares of the mining company's stock valued at $1,043,000 after buying an additional 24,868 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 67.68% of the company's stock.

Cleveland-Cliffs Company Profile

Cleveland-Cliffs Inc is a leading North American producer of iron ore pellets and flat-rolled steel products. Tracing its roots to 1847, the company has evolved from an iron-ore mining concern in the Great Lakes region into a fully integrated steelmaker. Today, Cleveland-Cliffs operates iron ore mining complexes in Michigan and Minnesota as well as steelmaking and finishing facilities across the United States.

The company's integrated platform begins with direct control of key raw materials, including iron ore and scrap, and extends through every stage of steel production.

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