Fox Run Management L.L.C. Takes $589,000 Position in CF Industries Holdings, Inc. $CF

Key Points

• Fox Run Management L.L.C. has acquired a new position in CF Industries, purchasing 7,542 shares valued at approximately $589,000.
• CF Industries reported a 20.2% year-over-year increase in revenue for the last quarter, totaling $1.89 billion, and earnings per share (EPS) of $2.37 which exceeded analysts' expectations.
• The company has initiated a stock repurchase program allowing the buyback of up to $2.00 billion worth of shares, indicating management's belief that the stock may be undervalued.

Fox Run Management L.L.C. purchased a new stake in CF Industries Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:CF - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 7,542 shares of the basic materials company's stock, valued at approximately $589,000.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. raised its position in shares of CF Industries by 4.4% in the 4th quarter. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. now owns 3,009 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $257,000 after acquiring an additional 126 shares during the period. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. grew its holdings in CF Industries by 2.0% during the first quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. now owns 7,192 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $562,000 after purchasing an additional 142 shares during the period. Principal Street Partners LLC increased its stake in CF Industries by 2.0% in the fourth quarter. Principal Street Partners LLC now owns 7,906 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $675,000 after purchasing an additional 154 shares in the last quarter. Alps Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in CF Industries by 3.5% in the first quarter. Alps Advisors Inc. now owns 4,624 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $361,000 after purchasing an additional 158 shares during the period. Finally, Assetmark Inc. raised its holdings in CF Industries by 12.6% in the first quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 1,425 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $111,000 after purchasing an additional 159 shares during the period. 93.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Bank of America reissued an "underperform" rating and issued a $82.00 price target (down previously from $93.00) on shares of CF Industries in a report on Thursday, August 14th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on CF Industries from $108.00 to $101.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, August 11th. Morgan Stanley set a $95.00 price target on CF Industries and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Thursday, June 26th. Wolfe Research cut CF Industries from an "outperform" rating to a "peer perform" rating in a report on Thursday, June 12th. Finally, Scotiabank reissued a "sector perform" rating and set a $82.00 target price (up from $81.00) on shares of CF Industries in a research note on Monday, August 11th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Buy rating, ten have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, CF Industries currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $95.00.

Insider Activity at CF Industries

In related news, EVP Susan L. Menzel sold 10,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, June 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $100.23, for a total value of $1,002,300.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 87,923 shares of the company's stock, 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 filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.42% of the company's stock.

CF Industries Stock Up 0.1%

CF stock traded up $0.0890 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $86.4490. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,086,359 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,753,895. The company's fifty day moving average price is $92.43 and its 200 day moving average price is $85.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38, a current ratio of 3.22 and a quick ratio of 2.84. CF Industries Holdings, Inc. has a twelve month low of $67.34 and a twelve month high of $104.45. The stock has a market capitalization of $14.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.29 and a beta of 0.94.

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

CF Industries Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 29th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 15th. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.3%. CF Industries's dividend payout ratio is currently 26.11%.

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

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.