Alliancebernstein L.P. Boosts Position in CF Industries Holdings, Inc. $CF

Key Points

• Alliancebernstein L.P. increased its stake in CF Industries by 10.2% during the first quarter, owning approximately 0.39% of the company valued at $51.27 million.
• CF Industries reported $2.37 EPS, exceeding analysts' expectations of $2.35, with a revenue of $1.89 billion for the quarter, up 20.2% year-over-year.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.50 per share, totaling $2.00 annually, representing a yield of 2.4%.

Alliancebernstein L.P. boosted its holdings in CF Industries Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:CF - Free Report) by 10.2% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 656,098 shares of the basic materials company's stock after purchasing an additional 60,824 shares during the quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. owned about 0.39% of CF Industries worth $51,274,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Curat Global LLC acquired a new stake in CF Industries in the 1st quarter valued at $25,000. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT acquired a new stake in CF Industries in the 1st quarter valued at $27,000. Golden State Wealth Management LLC grew its position in CF Industries by 119.8% in the 1st quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 378 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 206 shares during the period. TCTC Holdings LLC grew its position in CF Industries by 114.1% in the 1st quarter. TCTC Holdings LLC now owns 379 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 202 shares during the period. Finally, Heck Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in CF Industries in the 4th quarter valued at $34,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.06% of the company's stock.

CF Industries Stock Performance

CF Industries stock traded up $2.18 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $86.84. The stock had a trading volume of 2,312,234 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,733,717. CF Industries Holdings, Inc. has a 12 month low of $67.34 and a 12 month high of $104.45. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $89.70 and its 200 day moving average price is $85.21. The firm has a market capitalization of $14.07 billion, a PE ratio of 11.34 and a beta of 0.95. The company has a quick ratio of 2.84, a current ratio of 3.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38.

CF Industries (NYSE:CF - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The basic materials company reported $2.37 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.35 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $1.89 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.73 billion. CF Industries had a return on equity of 17.10% and a net margin of 20.19%.The company's quarterly revenue was up 20.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.30 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that CF Industries Holdings, Inc. will post 5.83 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

CF Industries Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 29th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 15th were issued a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 15th. CF Industries's payout ratio is presently 26.11%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on CF shares. Scotiabank reaffirmed a "sector perform" rating and set a $82.00 price objective (up from $81.00) on shares of CF Industries in a report on Monday, August 11th. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $100.00 target price on CF Industries and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Monday, July 14th. Wolfe Research cut CF Industries from an "outperform" rating to a "peer perform" rating in a research note on Thursday, June 12th. Zacks Research cut CF Industries from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 3rd. Finally, Morgan Stanley set a $95.00 price objective on CF Industries and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday, June 26th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $95.00.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other CF Industries 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 transaction, the executive vice president owned 87,923 shares of the company's stock, valued at $8,812,522.29. The trade was a 10.21% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 0.71% of the stock is owned by insiders.

CF Industries 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.