142,807 The Mosaic Company $MOS Shares Acquired by Howard Capital Management LLC

Key Points

• Howard Capital Management increased its Mosaic stake by 90.4% in the third quarter, acquiring 142,807 shares and bringing its holdings to 300,755 shares valued at approximately $6.5 million. Institutional investors collectively own 77.54% of the company.
• Analyst sentiment remains cautious: Mosaic has a consensus “Hold” rating from 22 analysts, with an average price target of $26.67 after several firms reduced ratings or targets.
• Mosaic shares recently traded at $18.81, near their 52-week low of $18.41. The company reported quarterly EPS of $0.13, while revenue fell 6% year over year to $2.82 billion; it also maintains a quarterly dividend of $0.22, yielding about 4.7%.

Howard Capital Management LLC raised its position in The Mosaic Company (NYSE:MOS - Free Report) by 90.4% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 300,755 shares of the basic materials company's stock after buying an additional 142,807 shares during the quarter. Howard Capital Management LLC owned about 0.09% of Mosaic worth $6,511,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MOS. Curated Wealth Partners LLC lifted its stake in shares of Mosaic by 61.3% during the 3rd quarter. Curated Wealth Partners LLC now owns 24,570 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $532,000 after buying an additional 9,339 shares in the last quarter. Mather Group LLC. grew its stake in Mosaic by 578.6% in the 3rd quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 4,058 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $88,000 after buying an additional 3,460 shares in the last quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC grew its stake in Mosaic by 1,575.9% in the 3rd quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 3,620 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $78,000 after buying an additional 3,404 shares in the last quarter. Riversedge Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Mosaic in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $201,000. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC raised its holdings in Mosaic by 38.0% during the 3rd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 21,460 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $465,000 after acquiring an additional 5,914 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 77.54% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MOS has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. lowered Mosaic from an "outperform" rating to a "sector perform" rating and cut their price target for the stock from $27.00 to $25.00 in a report on Monday, October 5th. Freedom Capital cut Mosaic from a "strong-buy" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 13th. Barclays decreased their price objective on Mosaic from $26.00 to $22.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday. Royal Bank Of Canada reissued a "sector perform" rating and set a $25.00 price objective (down from $27.00) on shares of Mosaic in a report on Monday, October 5th. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut Mosaic from a "sell" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a report on Sunday, July 12th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, thirteen have given a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $26.67.

Mosaic Price Performance

Mosaic stock traded down $0.14 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $18.81. 9,441,798 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 9,346,945. The company's fifty day moving average is $22.99 and its 200-day moving average is $22.94. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41, a quick ratio of 0.43 and a current ratio of 1.34. The firm has a market cap of $5.98 billion, a PE ratio of -9.31, a PEG ratio of 5.37 and a beta of 0.91. The Mosaic Company has a 52 week low of $18.41 and a 52 week high of $32.25.

Mosaic (NYSE:MOS - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The basic materials company reported $0.13 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.12 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $2.82 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.10 billion. Mosaic had a negative net margin of 5.21% and a positive return on equity of 3.77%. The business's quarterly revenue was down 6.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.51 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that The Mosaic Company will post 0.34 EPS for the current year.

Mosaic Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 24th. Investors of record on Thursday, September 10th were given a $0.22 dividend. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.7%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, September 10th. Mosaic's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is -43.56%.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Walter Precourt, III sold 23,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $22.12, for a total value of $508,760.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president owned 116,198 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,570,299.76. This trade represents a 16.52% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.31% of the company's stock.

Mosaic Company Profile

The Mosaic Company is a global producer and marketer of concentrated phosphate and potash crop nutrients. Its products are used by farmers to support plant growth, improve yields and replenish essential nutrients in agricultural soils. Mosaic also produces phosphate-based animal feed ingredients and other crop nutrition products.

Mosaic operates an integrated business that includes mining, processing, manufacturing and distribution. Its phosphate operations are primarily located in the United States, while its potash operations include mining assets in Canada and the United States.

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