The Mosaic Company (NYSE:MOS) Shares Sold by LSV Asset Management

Key Points

• LSV Asset Management reduced its stake in The Mosaic Company by 10.0%, selling 192,300 shares during the first quarter, resulting in a total of 1,735,790 shares valued at approximately $46.88 million.
• Other hedge funds, including Invesco Ltd. and Dimensional Fund Advisors, have increased their holdings in Mosaic, indicating strong institutional interest with 77.54% of the stock owned by institutional investors.
• Analysts have raised their price targets for Mosaic, with a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $36.75, reflecting positive sentiment in the market.

LSV Asset Management reduced its stake in shares of The Mosaic Company (NYSE:MOS - Free Report) by 10.0% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 1,735,790 shares of the basic materials company's stock after selling 192,300 shares during the quarter. LSV Asset Management owned about 0.55% of Mosaic worth $46,884,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. NBC Securities Inc. purchased a new position in Mosaic in the 1st quarter valued at about $26,000. Compagnie Lombard Odier SCmA purchased a new position in shares of Mosaic during the 1st quarter worth approximately $27,000. Allworth Financial LP grew its stake in Mosaic by 102.3% in the 1st quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 1,062 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 537 shares during the period. Heck Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Mosaic during the 4th quarter valued at $41,000. Finally, Huntington National Bank boosted its position in Mosaic by 54.1% during the 4th quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 3,374 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $83,000 after purchasing an additional 1,185 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 77.54% of the company's stock.

Mosaic Stock Performance

MOS stock traded up $0.15 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $35.67. 4,533,399 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,158,180. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $36.13 and its 200 day simple moving average is $30.81. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28, a current ratio of 1.12 and a quick ratio of 0.44. The company has a market cap of $11.32 billion, a PE ratio of 30.75, a P/E/G ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 1.12. The Mosaic Company has a 1 year low of $22.36 and a 1 year high of $38.23.

Mosaic (NYSE:MOS - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 5th. The basic materials company reported $0.51 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.71 by ($0.20). Mosaic had a return on equity of 4.91% and a net margin of 3.32%. The firm's revenue was up 6.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.54 EPS. On average, equities analysts expect that The Mosaic Company will post 2.04 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Mosaic

In other news, SVP Walter F. Precourt III sold 18,000 shares of Mosaic stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $35.73, for a total value of $643,140.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 128,546 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,592,948.58. This trade represents a 12.28% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.86% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have commented on MOS shares. BNP Paribas upgraded shares of Mosaic to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. UBS Group upgraded shares of Mosaic from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $45.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Mosaic from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, July 5th. Royal Bank Of Canada restated an "outperform" rating on shares of Mosaic in a report on Monday, July 14th. Finally, CIBC boosted their price objective on shares of Mosaic from $32.00 to $33.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, May 9th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $36.75.

About Mosaic

The Mosaic Company, through its subsidiaries, produces and markets concentrated phosphate and potash crop nutrients in North America and internationally. The company operates through three segments: Phosphates, Potash, and Mosaic Fertilizantes. It owns and operates mines, which produce concentrated phosphate crop nutrients, such as diammonium phosphate, monoammonium phosphate, and ammoniated phosphate products; and phosphate-based animal feed ingredients primarily under the Biofos and Nexfos brand names, as well as produces a double sulfate of potash magnesia product under K-Mag brand name.