Artemis Investment Management LLP Purchases New Shares in CF Industries Holdings, Inc. $CF

Key Points

• Artemis Investment Management acquired a new Q4 stake of 27,180 shares in CF Industries, worth approximately $2.10 million.
• Insiders sold 82,408 shares over the last three months (about $9.97 million), including sales by VP Richard Hoker and EVP Bert Frost, leaving insiders with just 0.51% ownership.
• CF beat quarterly estimates with $2.59 EPS and $1.87B revenue, declared a $0.50 quarterly dividend (annualized $2.00, yield 1.6%), while analysts maintain a consensus "Hold" rating with a $118.53 target.

Artemis Investment Management LLP acquired a new stake in CF Industries Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:CF - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 27,180 shares of the basic materials company's stock, valued at approximately $2,102,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Lakewood Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in CF Industries by 0.9% in the 4th quarter. Lakewood Asset Management LLC now owns 12,371 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $957,000 after buying an additional 111 shares in the last quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of CF Industries by 5.2% in the fourth quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 2,365 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $183,000 after purchasing an additional 116 shares during the last quarter. Kingsview Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in shares of CF Industries by 4.9% in the 3rd quarter. Kingsview Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,898 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $260,000 after acquiring an additional 135 shares during the last quarter. Albert D Mason Inc. raised its holdings in shares of CF Industries by 5.3% during the 4th quarter. Albert D Mason Inc. now owns 2,720 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $210,000 after acquiring an additional 137 shares during the period. Finally, Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. raised its holdings in shares of CF Industries by 1.7% during the 3rd quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 8,408 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $754,000 after acquiring an additional 142 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.06% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at CF Industries

In other news, VP Richard A. Hoker sold 3,499 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $125.38, for a total value of $438,704.62. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president owned 31,036 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,891,293.68. This trade represents a 10.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Bert A. Frost sold 6,000 shares of CF Industries stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $126.00, for a total value of $756,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 69,472 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $8,753,472. This trade represents a 7.95% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last three months, insiders sold 82,408 shares of company stock valued at $9,971,298. 0.51% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

CF Industries Stock Down 1.1%

Shares of NYSE CF opened at $122.90 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 2.93, a current ratio of 3.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41. The business's 50 day moving average is $119.68 and its two-hundred day moving average is $96.58. CF Industries Holdings, Inc. has a 52-week low of $75.42 and a 52-week high of $141.96. The firm has a market cap of $18.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.66 and a beta of 0.42.

CF Industries (NYSE:CF - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 18th. The basic materials company reported $2.59 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.53 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $1.87 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.78 billion. CF Industries had a return on equity of 19.84% and a net margin of 20.54%.The company's quarterly revenue was up 22.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.89 earnings per share. Research analysts predict that CF Industries Holdings, Inc. will post 12.41 EPS for the current year.

CF Industries Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 29th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 15th. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.6%. CF Industries's dividend payout ratio is 22.22%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Mizuho raised their price objective on shares of CF Industries from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock an "underperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 31st. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on shares of CF Industries from $95.00 to $135.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 28th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of CF Industries from $100.00 to $113.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, February 20th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on shares of CF Industries from $115.00 to $140.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 18th. Finally, Bank of America upped their price objective on CF Industries from $86.00 to $103.00 and gave the company an "underperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, March 18th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have issued a Buy rating, nine have given a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $118.53.

CF Industries Company Profile

CF Industries Holdings, Inc is a leading global manufacturer of hydrogen and nitrogen products for agricultural and industrial customers. The company specializes in the production of ammonia, granular urea, urea ammonium nitrate (UAN), nitric acid and ammonium nitrate, which serve as key inputs for fertilizer blends, industrial chemicals and other downstream applications.

Headquartered in Deerfield, Illinois, CF Industries operates production facilities and distribution terminals across North America and the United Kingdom.

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