Banque Cantonale Vaudoise Makes New Investment in CF Industries Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:CF)

Key Points

• Banque Cantonale Vaudoise acquired 4,619 shares of CF Industries Holdings, valued at approximately $361,000, marking a significant new investment during the first quarter.
• Analysts are mixed on CF Industries, with rating changes ranging from Wolfe Research's downgrade to "peer perform" to JPMorgan Chase's upgrade and increased price target from $75 to $92.
• CF Industries announced a quarterly dividend of $0.50 per share and initiated a $2.00 billion share buyback, signaling confidence in the company's valuation.

Banque Cantonale Vaudoise purchased a new position in CF Industries Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:CF - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 4,619 shares of the basic materials company's stock, valued at approximately $361,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Curat Global LLC acquired a new position in CF Industries in the first quarter worth $25,000. Mizuho Bank Ltd. acquired a new position in CF Industries in the fourth quarter worth $26,000. Golden State Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in CF Industries by 119.8% in the first quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 378 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 206 shares during the period. TCTC Holdings LLC boosted its holdings in CF Industries by 114.1% in the first quarter. TCTC Holdings LLC now owns 379 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 202 shares during the period. Finally, Heck Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in CF Industries in the fourth quarter worth $34,000. Institutional investors own 93.06% of the company's stock.

CF Industries Price Performance

CF Industries stock traded up $2.16 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $93.72. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,157,372 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,140,641. The company has a quick ratio of 2.22, a current ratio of 2.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $94.12 and its 200-day moving average price is $85.59. CF Industries Holdings, Inc. has a 12 month low of $67.34 and a 12 month high of $104.45. The company has a market capitalization of $15.89 billion, a PE ratio of 12.35 and a beta of 0.94.

CF Industries (NYSE:CF - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The basic materials company reported $1.85 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.47 by $0.38. CF Industries had a net margin of 21.80% and a return on equity of 17.39%. The firm had revenue of $1.66 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.53 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.03 earnings per share. CF Industries's revenue for the quarter was up 13.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts anticipate 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 disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 29th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.1%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 15th. CF Industries's payout ratio is presently 26.35%.

CF Industries announced that its board has initiated a stock buyback program on Wednesday, May 7th that authorizes the company to buyback $2.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the basic materials company to buy up to 14.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often an indication that the company's management believes its shares are undervalued.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

CF has been the subject of a number of research reports. Wolfe Research downgraded shares of CF Industries from an "outperform" rating to a "peer perform" rating in a report on Thursday, June 12th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of CF Industries from $105.00 to $108.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, July 17th. Morgan Stanley set a $95.00 price target on shares of CF Industries and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Thursday, June 26th. Scotiabank raised shares of CF Industries from a "sector underperform" rating to a "sector perform" rating and set a $81.00 price target for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised shares of CF Industries from an "underweight" rating to a "neutral" rating and boosted their price target for the company from $75.00 to $92.00 in a report on Tuesday, July 29th. Twelve analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, three have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $95.71.

Insider Transactions at CF Industries

In other CF Industries news, EVP Susan L. Menzel sold 10,000 shares of the business's 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 sale, the executive vice president owned 87,923 shares in the company, valued at approximately $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 accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.71% of the company's stock.

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.