Compass Minerals International (NYSE:CMP) Reaches New 52-Week High - Still a Buy?

Compass Minerals International, Inc. (NYSE:CMP - Get Free Report) reached a new 52-week high during trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $20.17 and last traded at $19.73, with a volume of 1448290 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $19.46.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

CMP has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of Compass Minerals International from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $13.00 to $15.00 in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on Compass Minerals International from $15.00 to $20.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research report on Monday, May 12th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded Compass Minerals International from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th.

Compass Minerals International Stock Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $794.01 million, a P/E ratio of -4.84 and a beta of 0.95. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $12.13 and its 200 day simple moving average is $12.34. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.67, a current ratio of 2.37 and a quick ratio of 1.12.

Compass Minerals International (NYSE:CMP - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The basic materials company reported $0.63 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.39 by $0.24. The business had revenue of $494.60 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $413.96 million. Compass Minerals International had a negative net margin of 15.10% and a negative return on equity of 10.00%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 35.9% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts expect that Compass Minerals International, Inc. will post -0.53 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Compass Minerals International

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in CMP. Koch Inc. acquired a new position in Compass Minerals International in the 4th quarter valued at $79,139,000. SailingStone Capital Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of Compass Minerals International by 13.7% in the fourth quarter. SailingStone Capital Partners LLC now owns 5,427,142 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $61,055,000 after acquiring an additional 652,129 shares in the last quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Compass Minerals International by 642.5% in the fourth quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC now owns 1,058,551 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $11,909,000 after acquiring an additional 915,983 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in Compass Minerals International by 0.4% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 785,676 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $8,842,000 after acquiring an additional 2,865 shares during the period. Finally, Lightrock Netherlands B.V. raised its stake in Compass Minerals International by 33.6% in the 1st quarter. Lightrock Netherlands B.V. now owns 755,373 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $7,029,000 after purchasing an additional 189,786 shares in 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.