Invesco Ltd. Purchases 240,756 Shares of CF Industries Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:CF)

Key Points

• Invesco Ltd. has increased its position in CF Industries by 4.4% during the first quarter, now owning approximately 3.37% of the company worth $446.13 million.
• CF Industries has announced a quarterly $0.50 dividend, representing an annualized amount of $2.00 with a yield of 2.5%.
• Analysts have mixed opinions on CF Industries, with an average price target of $95.23 and several ratings being revised, including a cut from "buy" to "hold" by Wall Street Zen.

Invesco Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of CF Industries Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:CF - Free Report) by 4.4% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 5,708,643 shares of the basic materials company's stock after purchasing an additional 240,756 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. owned about 3.37% of CF Industries worth $446,130,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Curat Global LLC bought a new position in CF Industries during the first quarter worth about $25,000. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT bought a new position in CF Industries during the first quarter worth about $27,000. Golden State Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in CF Industries by 119.8% during 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 lifted its stake in CF Industries by 114.1% during 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 bought a new position in CF Industries during the fourth quarter worth about $34,000. Institutional investors own 93.06% of the company's stock.

CF Industries Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:CF traded up $0.20 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $82.83. The stock had a trading volume of 3,519,988 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,639,376. The company's 50-day moving average price is $93.48 and its 200-day moving average price is $85.29. The company has a market capitalization of $13.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.81 and a beta of 0.94. The company has a quick ratio of 2.84, a current ratio of 3.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38. CF Industries Holdings, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $67.34 and a fifty-two week high of $104.45.

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

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

CF Industries Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 29th. Investors of record on Friday, August 15th will be issued 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 dividend yield of 2.4%. CF Industries's payout ratio is 26.11%.

Insider Activity

In other CF Industries news, EVP Susan L. Menzel sold 10,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 in the company, valued at approximately $8,812,522.29. This represents a 10.21% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Company insiders own 0.71% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

CF has been the topic of several research analyst reports. UBS Group decreased their price objective on shares of CF Industries from $103.00 to $101.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, August 7th. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $100.00 price objective on shares of CF Industries and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Monday, July 14th. Scotiabank reaffirmed a "sector perform" rating and set a $82.00 price objective (up from $81.00) on shares of CF Industries in a research note on Monday. Wall Street Zen cut shares of CF Industries from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday. Finally, Oppenheimer cut shares of CF Industries from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. Thirteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $94.77.

CF Industries 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.