Barclays PLC Purchases 1,703,791 Shares of Cleveland-Cliffs Inc. $CLF

Key Points

• Barclays PLC increased its stake in Cleveland‑Cliffs by 281.9% in Q3, buying 1,703,791 shares to hold 2,308,271 shares (about 0.47% of the company) worth roughly $28.16 million.
• Insider selling was significant: CEO Lourenco Goncalves sold 3,000,000 shares for ~$37.26 million and the COO sold 200,000 shares, leaving corporate insiders with about 1.71% ownership.
• Analysts are mixed—MarketBeat shows an average rating of Hold with a $13.89 target—while Cleveland‑Cliffs beat EPS estimates (-$0.43 vs. -$0.62) but missed revenue and remains unprofitable (negative ROE and net margin).

Barclays PLC boosted its position in Cleveland-Cliffs Inc. (NYSE:CLF - Free Report) by 281.9% during the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 2,308,271 shares of the mining company's stock after acquiring an additional 1,703,791 shares during the quarter. Barclays PLC owned 0.47% of Cleveland-Cliffs worth $28,161,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in CLF. Strengthening Families & Communities LLC lifted its stake in Cleveland-Cliffs by 4,315.6% in the 3rd quarter. Strengthening Families & Communities LLC now owns 1,987 shares of the mining company's stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 1,942 shares during the last quarter. Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators grew its stake in shares of Cleveland-Cliffs by 72.6% during the third quarter. Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators now owns 2,768 shares of the mining company's stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 1,164 shares during the last quarter. Islay Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Cleveland-Cliffs during the second quarter worth $38,000. MTM Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Cleveland-Cliffs in the 2nd quarter valued at $40,000. Finally, N.E.W. Advisory Services LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Cleveland-Cliffs during the 2nd quarter valued at $40,000. 67.68% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently commented on the company. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a "buy" rating and set a $15.00 price target on shares of Cleveland-Cliffs in a research note on Monday, February 9th. Morgan Stanley upgraded shares of Cleveland-Cliffs from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and raised their price objective for the company from $12.80 to $17.00 in a report on Friday, January 9th. Glj Research cut their target price on shares of Cleveland-Cliffs from $9.52 to $9.42 and set a "sell" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, February 10th. Weiss Ratings restated a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of Cleveland-Cliffs in a research report on Tuesday, January 27th. Finally, KeyCorp downgraded shares of Cleveland-Cliffs from an "overweight" rating to a "sector weight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 7th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $13.89.

Cleveland-Cliffs Stock Performance

CLF opened at $9.28 on Thursday. Cleveland-Cliffs Inc. has a 1-year low of $5.63 and a 1-year high of $16.70. The company has a market cap of $5.29 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -3.18 and a beta of 1.99. The company's fifty day moving average price is $12.38 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $12.31. The company has a current ratio of 1.95, a quick ratio of 0.50 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15.

Cleveland-Cliffs (NYSE:CLF - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 9th. The mining company reported ($0.43) EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.62) by $0.19. Cleveland-Cliffs had a negative return on equity of 18.94% and a negative net margin of 7.91%.The firm had revenue of $4.31 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.60 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted ($0.68) EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was down .3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts expect that Cleveland-Cliffs Inc. will post -0.79 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Lourenco Goncalves sold 3,000,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $12.42, for a total transaction of $37,260,000.00. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, COO Clifford T. Smith sold 200,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $10.46, for a total transaction of $2,092,000.00. Following the sale, the chief operating officer owned 560,529 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,863,133.34. This trade represents a 26.30% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 1.71% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Cleveland-Cliffs Profile

Cleveland-Cliffs Inc is a leading North American producer of iron ore pellets and flat-rolled steel products. Tracing its roots to 1847, the company has evolved from an iron-ore mining concern in the Great Lakes region into a fully integrated steelmaker. Today, Cleveland-Cliffs operates iron ore mining complexes in Michigan and Minnesota as well as steelmaking and finishing facilities across the United States.

The company's integrated platform begins with direct control of key raw materials, including iron ore and scrap, and extends through every stage of steel production.

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