B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. AG Sells 4,120 Shares of CF Industries Holdings, Inc. $CF

Key Points

• B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. AG reduced its stake in CF Industries by 27.8%, now holding 10,674 shares, valued at $834,000.
• CF Industries recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.50, representing an annualized yield of 2.3% with a payout ratio of 26.11%.
• The stock has a market capitalization of $14.03 billion and reported earnings of $2.37 EPS for the most recent quarter, beating estimates.

B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. AG trimmed its stake in shares of CF Industries Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:CF - Free Report) by 27.8% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 10,674 shares of the basic materials company's stock after selling 4,120 shares during the period. B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. AG's holdings in CF Industries were worth $834,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in CF Industries by 1.5% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 21,040,601 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $1,644,323,000 after buying an additional 319,343 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in CF Industries by 4.5% during the 1st quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 6,055,283 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $473,220,000 after buying an additional 262,944 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. grew its stake in shares of 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 buying an additional 240,756 shares in the last quarter. Boston Partners grew its stake in shares of CF Industries by 9.3% in the 1st quarter. Boston Partners now owns 3,623,708 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $283,169,000 after buying an additional 307,092 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ameriprise Financial Inc. grew its stake in shares of CF Industries by 16.8% in the 1st quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 3,275,464 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $255,977,000 after buying an additional 470,746 shares in the last quarter. 93.06% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

CF Industries Stock Down 1.5%

Shares of CF stock traded down $1.29 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $83.48. The stock had a trading volume of 1,998,518 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,735,589. CF Industries Holdings, Inc. has a 12-month low of $67.34 and a 12-month high of $104.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38, a current ratio of 3.22 and a quick ratio of 2.84. The firm's 50-day moving average is $90.27 and its two-hundred day moving average is $85.10. The firm has a market capitalization of $13.52 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.90 and a beta of 0.95.

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

CF Industries declared that its board has initiated a share buyback plan on Wednesday, May 7th that allows the company to buyback $2.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the basic materials company to purchase up to 14.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are typically an indication that the company's board believes its shares are undervalued.

CF Industries Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 29th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 15th were given a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 15th. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.4%. CF Industries's dividend payout ratio is presently 26.11%.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Susan L. Menzel sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $100.23, for a total transaction of $1,002,300.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 87,923 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,812,522.29. This trade represents a 10.21% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 0.42% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

CF has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Wall Street Zen cut shares of CF Industries from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 9th. Scotiabank reiterated a "sector perform" rating and issued a $82.00 target price (up previously from $81.00) on shares of CF Industries in a report on Monday, August 11th. Barclays raised shares of CF Industries from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $95.00 to $100.00 in a research note on Wednesday, August 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised shares of CF Industries from an "underweight" rating to a "neutral" rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $75.00 to $92.00 in a research note on Tuesday, July 29th. Finally, Bank of America reaffirmed an "underperform" rating and set a $82.00 price target (down from $93.00) on shares of CF Industries in a research note on Thursday, August 14th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, CF Industries currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $95.00.

CF Industries Company 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.