Vestcor Inc Has $715,000 Position in CF Industries Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:CF)

Key Points

• Vestcor Inc increased its holdings in CF Industries by 185.1% during the first quarter, bringing their total shares to 9,147, valued at approximately $715,000.
• CF Industries reported earnings of $1.85 EPS for the recent quarter, surpassing analysts' expectations of $1.47, and saw a year-over-year revenue growth of 13.1%.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.50 per share, with a total annualized dividend of $2.00, reflecting a yield of 2.2%.

Vestcor Inc raised its position in CF Industries Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:CF - Free Report) by 185.1% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 9,147 shares of the basic materials company's stock after buying an additional 5,939 shares during the quarter. Vestcor Inc's holdings in CF Industries were worth $715,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. raised its holdings in CF Industries by 4.4% during the fourth quarter. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. now owns 3,009 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $257,000 after purchasing an additional 126 shares in the last quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of CF Industries by 2.0% in the first quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. now owns 7,192 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $562,000 after buying an additional 142 shares in the last quarter. Principal Street Partners LLC raised its position 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 worth $675,000 after acquiring an additional 154 shares in the last quarter. Alps Advisors Inc. lifted 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 valued at $361,000 after acquiring an additional 158 shares during the period. Finally, Assetmark Inc. boosted its position in shares of CF Industries by 12.6% during the 1st quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 1,425 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $111,000 after purchasing an additional 159 shares in the last quarter. 93.06% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Susan L. Menzel sold 10,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction 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 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 sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.71% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently commented on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of CF Industries from $105.00 to $108.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 17th. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $100.00 target price on CF Industries and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Monday, July 14th. Oppenheimer cut CF Industries from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded CF Industries from an "underweight" rating to a "neutral" rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $75.00 to $92.00 in a research report on Tuesday, July 29th. Finally, Morgan Stanley set a $95.00 price target on shares of CF Industries and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Thursday, June 26th. Twelve equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, three have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, CF Industries presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $95.71.

CF Industries Stock Down 2.5%

CF traded down $2.34 on Wednesday, reaching $90.38. The company's stock had a trading volume of 3,844,510 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,713,936. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41, a current ratio of 2.59 and a quick ratio of 2.22. CF Industries Holdings, Inc. has a 1 year low of $67.34 and a 1 year high of $104.45. The business's 50 day moving average is $94.24 and its 200 day moving average is $85.62. The stock has a market cap of $15.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.91 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, topping the consensus estimate of $2.16 by $0.21. CF Industries had a net margin of 21.80% and a return on equity of 17.39%. As a group, research analysts forecast that CF Industries Holdings, Inc. will post 5.83 EPS for the current fiscal year.

CF Industries announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share 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 repurchase up to 14.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are generally a sign that the company's management believes its shares are undervalued.

CF Industries Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 29th. Investors 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 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.2%. CF Industries's dividend payout ratio is 26.35%.

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.