Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. Grows Position in CF Industries Holdings, Inc. $CF

Key Points

• Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. increased its holdings in CF Industries by 23.2%, acquiring an additional 56,200 shares during the first quarter, bringing its total ownership to 298,822 shares valued at $23.35 million.
• CF Industries reported a quarterly earnings per share (EPS) of $2.37, beating analyst estimates and showing a revenue increase of 20.2% year-over-year.
• The company recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.50, translating to an annual yield of 2.4% with a payout ratio of 26.11%.

Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. lifted its stake in shares of CF Industries Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:CF - Free Report) by 23.2% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 298,822 shares of the basic materials company's stock after purchasing an additional 56,200 shares during the quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. owned about 0.18% of CF Industries worth $23,353,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in CF Industries by 1.5% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 21,040,601 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $1,644,323,000 after acquiring an additional 319,343 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its position in CF Industries by 4.5% in the 1st quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 6,055,283 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $473,220,000 after purchasing an additional 262,944 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. grew its position in CF Industries by 4.4% in the 1st quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 5,708,643 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $446,130,000 after purchasing an additional 240,756 shares during the period. Boston Partners boosted its stake in shares of CF Industries by 9.3% during the 1st quarter. Boston Partners now owns 3,623,708 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $283,169,000 after acquiring an additional 307,092 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Ameriprise Financial Inc. raised its stake in CF Industries by 16.8% during the 1st quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 3,275,464 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $255,977,000 after acquiring an additional 470,746 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 93.06% of the company's stock.

CF Industries Trading Up 0.6%

Shares of NYSE CF traded up $0.50 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $85.16. The company's stock had a trading volume of 288,897 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,721,769. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $89.70 and its 200-day simple moving average is $85.21. CF Industries Holdings, Inc. has a one year low of $67.34 and a one year high of $104.45. The stock has a market cap of $13.79 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.13 and a beta of 0.95. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38, a current ratio of 3.22 and a quick ratio of 2.84.

CF Industries (NYSE:CF - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The basic materials company reported $2.37 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.35 by $0.02. CF Industries had a net margin of 20.19% and a return on equity of 17.10%. The business had revenue of $1.89 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.73 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.30 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 20.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that CF Industries Holdings, Inc. will post 5.83 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

CF Industries Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 29th. Investors of record on Friday, August 15th were issued a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 15th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.3%. CF Industries's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 26.11%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Susan L. Menzel sold 10,000 shares of CF Industries stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $100.23, for a total transaction of $1,002,300.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 87,923 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,812,522.29. This trade represents a 10.21% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 0.71% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Morgan Stanley set a $95.00 target price on shares of CF Industries and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday, June 26th. Scotiabank reiterated a "sector perform" rating and issued a $82.00 target price (up from $81.00) on shares of CF Industries in a report on Monday, August 11th. Wolfe Research downgraded shares of CF Industries from an "outperform" rating to a "peer perform" rating in a research note on Thursday, June 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of CF Industries from an "underweight" rating to a "neutral" rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $75.00 to $92.00 in a research report on Tuesday, July 29th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded CF Industries from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, September 5th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $95.00.

About CF Industries

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.