Compass Minerals International (NYSE:CMP) Downgraded to Buy Rating by Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Compass Minerals International (NYSE:CMP - Free Report) from a strong-buy rating to a buy rating in a research report sent to investors on Friday.

CMP has been the subject of a number of other reports. BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on Compass Minerals International from $15.00 to $20.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a report on Monday, May 12th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $22.00 price objective (up from $14.00) on shares of Compass Minerals International in a report on Monday, June 23rd.

Compass Minerals International Price Performance

Shares of CMP traded up $0.34 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $20.04. The stock had a trading volume of 2,026,543 shares, compared to its average volume of 812,700. The company's 50-day moving average is $17.79 and its 200 day moving average is $13.52. Compass Minerals International has a 12-month low of $7.51 and a 12-month high of $20.96. The company has a current ratio of 1.84, a quick ratio of 1.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.37. The company has a market capitalization of $831.83 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -5.63 and a beta of 1.11.

Compass Minerals International (NYSE:CMP - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 7th. The basic materials company reported $0.63 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.39 by $0.24. Compass Minerals International had a negative return on equity of 24.24% and a negative net margin of 12.15%. The firm had revenue of $494.60 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $413.96 million. Compass Minerals International's revenue was up 35.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts predict that Compass Minerals International will post -0.53 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Compass Minerals International

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. lifted its stake in shares of Compass Minerals International by 4.3% in the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 20,665 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $192,000 after acquiring an additional 858 shares during the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its stake in shares of Compass Minerals International by 2.7% in the 4th quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 38,063 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $429,000 after acquiring an additional 983 shares during the last quarter. SummerHaven Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Compass Minerals International by 1.7% in the 1st quarter. SummerHaven Investment Management LLC now owns 73,947 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $687,000 after acquiring an additional 1,233 shares during the last quarter. Schonfeld Strategic Advisors LLC raised its position in Compass Minerals International by 7.0% during the 4th quarter. Schonfeld Strategic Advisors LLC now owns 20,540 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $231,000 after purchasing an additional 1,340 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Envestnet Asset Management Inc. raised its position in Compass Minerals International by 3.2% during the 1st quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 49,191 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $457,000 after purchasing an additional 1,535 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 99.78% of the company's stock.

About Compass Minerals International

Compass Minerals International, Inc, provides essential minerals in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, and internationally. It operates through two segments, Salt and Plant Nutrition. The Salt segment produces, markets, and sells sodium chloride and magnesium chloride, including rock salt, mechanically and solar evaporated salt, and brine and flake magnesium chloride products; and purchases potassium chloride and calcium chloride to sell as finished products or to blend with sodium chloride to produce specialty products.