Swedbank AB Raises Holdings in CF Industries Holdings, Inc. $CF

Key Points

• Swedbank AB increased its stake in CF Industries by 12.4% in the fourth quarter, adding 34,064 shares to reach 309,509 shares valued at about $23.9 million.
• CF Industries reported stronger-than-expected first-quarter results, posting EPS of $3.98 versus the $2.63 estimate and revenue of $1.99 billion versus the $1.84 billion consensus, with revenue up 19.4% year over year.
• Analysts remain mixed on the stock: several firms lifted price targets, but the overall consensus rating is “Hold” with an average target price of $118.47, while insiders have also been selling shares recently.

Swedbank AB grew its position in shares of CF Industries Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:CF - Free Report) by 12.4% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 309,509 shares of the basic materials company's stock after purchasing an additional 34,064 shares during the quarter. Swedbank AB owned approximately 0.20% of CF Industries worth $23,937,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in CF. Worldquant Millennium Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of CF Industries during the second quarter worth about $96,560,000. Caisse de depot et placement du Quebec grew its holdings in shares of CF Industries by 52.4% during the third quarter. Caisse de depot et placement du Quebec now owns 1,775,106 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $159,227,000 after purchasing an additional 610,259 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its holdings in shares of CF Industries by 22.2% during the third quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 3,133,709 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $281,104,000 after purchasing an additional 568,710 shares during the last quarter. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd grew its holdings in shares of CF Industries by 115.1% during the fourth quarter. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd now owns 1,019,926 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $78,881,000 after purchasing an additional 545,668 shares during the last quarter. Finally, LSV Asset Management grew its holdings in shares of CF Industries by 106.3% during the third quarter. LSV Asset Management now owns 1,053,802 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $94,526,000 after purchasing an additional 543,070 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.06% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have issued reports on CF shares. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on CF Industries from $100.00 to $113.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, February 20th. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price objective on CF Industries from $100.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on CF Industries from $80.00 to $94.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, February 20th. Barclays raised their price objective on CF Industries from $130.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, April 27th. Finally, Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce increased their target price on shares of CF Industries from $118.00 to $128.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have given a Buy rating, nine have assigned a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $118.47.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Susan L. Menzel sold 18,041 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $136.06, for a total transaction of $2,454,658.46. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 55,762 shares of the company's stock, valued at $7,586,977.72. This represents a 24.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, SVP Michael Patrick Mcgrane sold 3,666 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $116.50, for a total transaction of $427,089.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 19,161 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,232,256.50. This represents a 16.06% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 82,408 shares of company stock valued at $9,971,298. Company insiders own 0.51% of the company's stock.

CF Industries Price Performance

Shares of CF opened at $121.81 on Tuesday. CF Industries Holdings, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $75.42 and a fifty-two week high of $141.96. The company has a market capitalization of $18.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.94 and a beta of 0.42. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $124.72 and a 200-day simple moving average of $100.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39, a quick ratio of 3.15 and a current ratio of 3.54.

CF Industries (NYSE:CF - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The basic materials company reported $3.98 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.63 by $1.35. The business had revenue of $1.99 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.84 billion. CF Industries had a net margin of 23.73% and a return on equity of 20.93%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 19.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.85 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that CF Industries Holdings, Inc. will post 13.95 earnings per share for the current year.

CF Industries Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 29th. Investors of record on Friday, May 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 15th. CF Industries's dividend payout ratio is currently 17.97%.

CF Industries Company Profile

CF Industries Holdings, Inc is a leading global manufacturer of hydrogen and nitrogen products for agricultural and industrial customers. The company specializes in the production of ammonia, granular urea, urea ammonium nitrate (UAN), nitric acid and ammonium nitrate, which serve as key inputs for fertilizer blends, industrial chemicals and other downstream applications.

Headquartered in Deerfield, Illinois, CF Industries operates production facilities and distribution terminals across North America and the United Kingdom.

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