Azzad Asset Management Inc. ADV Makes New Investment in CF Industries Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:CF)

Azzad Asset Management Inc. ADV bought a new stake in CF Industries Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:CF - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund bought 16,073 shares of the basic materials company's stock, valued at approximately $1,256,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Korea Investment CORP lifted its stake in shares of CF Industries by 88.5% during the fourth quarter. Korea Investment CORP now owns 150,374 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $12,830,000 after purchasing an additional 70,585 shares in the last quarter. National Pension Service increased its position in shares of CF Industries by 2,848.4% in the 4th quarter. National Pension Service now owns 290,384 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $24,776,000 after purchasing an additional 280,535 shares during the last quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in CF Industries during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $51,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of CF Industries by 4.0% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 5,792,339 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $494,202,000 after acquiring an additional 225,109 shares during the last quarter. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. raised its holdings in shares of CF Industries by 8.0% during the fourth quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 327,654 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $27,955,000 after purchasing an additional 24,135 shares during the period. 93.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

CF Industries Stock Performance

Shares of CF stock traded up $0.82 during trading on Monday, reaching $100.75. 1,872,644 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,154,677. CF Industries Holdings, Inc. has a twelve month low of $67.34 and a twelve month high of $104.39. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $83.41 and its 200-day moving average price is $84.05. The company has a quick ratio of 2.52, a current ratio of 3.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39. The stock has a market capitalization of $17.08 billion, a PE ratio of 14.86, a PEG ratio of 0.37 and a beta of 0.97.

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

CF Industries Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 30th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 15th were issued a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.99%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, May 15th. CF Industries's dividend payout ratio is 26.35%.

CF Industries announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock repurchase program on Wednesday, May 7th that allows the company to repurchase $2.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the basic materials company to buy up to 14.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are often a sign that the company's leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of CF Industries from $96.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, May 12th. Barclays upped their price target on shares of CF Industries from $87.00 to $91.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 14th. Wolfe Research cut CF Industries from an "outperform" rating to a "peer perform" rating in a report on Thursday. Royal Bank of Canada cut their price target on shares of CF Industries from $100.00 to $90.00 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. Finally, Bank of America upgraded CF Industries from an "underperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $84.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Monday, February 24th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have given a hold rating, three have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $90.21.

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.