LPL Financial LLC Buys 14,965 Shares of CF Industries Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:CF)

Key Points

• LPL Financial LLC increased its stake in CF Industries Holdings, Inc. by 28.3%, owning 67,789 shares worth approximately $5.3 million.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.50 per share, with the ex-dividend date set for August 15th, representing an annual yield of 2.4%.
• CF Industries reported $2.37 earnings per share (EPS) for the last quarter, surpassing the consensus estimate, with significant revenue growth of 20.2% year-over-year.

LPL Financial LLC lifted its holdings in shares of CF Industries Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:CF - Free Report) by 28.3% in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 67,789 shares of the basic materials company's stock after acquiring an additional 14,965 shares during the period. LPL Financial LLC's holdings in CF Industries were worth $5,298,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. First Trust Advisors LP lifted its holdings in CF Industries by 3.5% during the 4th quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 4,425,518 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $377,585,000 after purchasing an additional 150,461 shares during the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. lifted its holdings in CF Industries by 29.4% during the 4th quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 2,804,718 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $239,299,000 after purchasing an additional 637,784 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its holdings in CF Industries by 72.8% during the 1st quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 2,278,354 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $178,053,000 after purchasing an additional 959,901 shares during the last quarter. Earnest Partners LLC lifted its holdings in CF Industries by 3.3% during the 4th quarter. Earnest Partners LLC now owns 2,248,740 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $191,862,000 after purchasing an additional 71,512 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Pacer Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in CF Industries by 8,352.8% during the 1st quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 1,451,338 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $113,422,000 after purchasing an additional 1,434,168 shares during the last quarter. 93.06% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

CF Industries Trading Up 0.7%

Shares of NYSE:CF traded up $0.61 during trading on Friday, hitting $85.88. 2,428,910 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,780,258. CF Industries Holdings, Inc. has a 1-year low of $67.34 and a 1-year high of $104.45. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $93.23 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $85.27. The company has a current ratio of 3.22, a quick ratio of 2.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38. The firm has a market cap of $13.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.21 and a beta of 0.94.

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

CF Industries declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback plan on Wednesday, May 7th that authorizes the company to repurchase $2.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the basic materials company to buy up to 14.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are usually an indication that the company's board believes its stock is undervalued.

CF Industries Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 29th. Investors of record on Friday, August 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 15th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.3%. CF Industries's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 26.11%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Susan L. Menzel sold 10,000 shares of CF Industries 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 owned 87,923 shares of the company's stock, valued at $8,812,522.29. This trade represents a 10.21% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 0.42% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

CF has been the subject of several research reports. Wolfe Research cut shares of CF Industries from an "outperform" rating to a "peer perform" rating in a research report on Thursday, June 12th. Morgan Stanley set a $95.00 price objective on shares of CF Industries and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday, June 26th. Bank of America restated an "underperform" rating and issued a $82.00 price objective (down previously from $93.00) on shares of CF Industries in a research report on Thursday. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on shares of CF Industries from $108.00 to $101.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Monday. Finally, Scotiabank restated a "sector perform" rating and issued a $82.00 price objective (up previously from $81.00) on shares of CF Industries in a research report on Monday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have assigned a hold rating, three have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $95.00.

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.