CF Industries Holdings, Inc. $CF Shares Sold by State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D

Key Points

• The State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D reduced its stake in CF Industries Holdings, Inc. by 9.9%, now holding 58,992 shares valued at $4.61 million.
• Recent institutional activity includes Curat Global LLC acquiring a new stake valued at about $25,000 and Golden State Wealth Management raising its stake by 119.8%.
• CF Industries announced a quarterly dividend of $0.50 per share, with an annualized yield of 2.4%, and plans to repurchase $2 billion in shares indicating stock undervaluation.

State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D reduced its position in CF Industries Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:CF - Free Report) by 9.9% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 58,992 shares of the basic materials company's stock after selling 6,472 shares during the period. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D's holdings in CF Industries were worth $4,610,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of CF. Curat Global LLC purchased a new position in CF Industries during the first quarter worth $25,000. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT purchased a new position in CF Industries during the first quarter worth $27,000. Golden State Wealth Management LLC increased its position 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 buying an additional 206 shares in the last quarter. TCTC Holdings LLC increased its position 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 buying an additional 202 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Heck Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in CF Industries during the fourth quarter worth $34,000. 93.06% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

CF Industries Stock Up 0.1%

Shares of CF traded up $0.06 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $86.42. 1,634,151 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,840,914. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $92.16 and a 200-day moving average price of $84.99. The company has a market cap of $14.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.28 and a beta of 0.94. CF Industries Holdings, Inc. has a 1-year low of $67.34 and a 1-year high of $104.45. The company has a current ratio of 3.22, a quick ratio of 2.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38.

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

CF Industries Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 29th. Stockholders 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 2.3%. CF Industries's dividend payout ratio is 26.11%.

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have weighed in on CF. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised CF Industries from an "underweight" rating to a "neutral" rating and raised their price target for the stock from $75.00 to $92.00 in a research report on Tuesday, July 29th. Morgan Stanley set a $95.00 price objective on CF Industries and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Thursday, June 26th. Scotiabank restated a "sector perform" rating and set a $82.00 price objective (up previously from $81.00) on shares of CF Industries in a report on Monday, August 11th. Barclays upgraded CF Industries from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $95.00 to $100.00 in a report on Wednesday, August 13th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on CF Industries from $108.00 to $101.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, August 11th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have assigned a Buy rating, ten have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $95.00.

Insider Activity at CF Industries

In other news, EVP Susan L. Menzel sold 10,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $100.23, for a total transaction 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 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 can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.42% of the company's stock.

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.