Wedge Capital Management L L P NC Buys 5,575 Shares of CF Industries Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:CF)

Wedge Capital Management L L P NC grew its stake in CF Industries Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:CF - Free Report) by 7.3% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 81,494 shares of the basic materials company's stock after buying an additional 5,575 shares during the period. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC's holdings in CF Industries were worth $6,369,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in CF. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of CF Industries in the fourth quarter valued at about $131,350,000. Ameriprise Financial Inc. increased its stake in shares of CF Industries by 29.4% in the fourth quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 2,804,718 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $239,299,000 after buying an additional 637,784 shares during the period. FMR LLC increased its stake in shares of CF Industries by 6.6% in the fourth quarter. FMR LLC now owns 8,830,621 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $753,429,000 after buying an additional 543,876 shares during the period. Powszechne Towarzystwo Emerytalne Allianz Polska S.A. acquired a new stake in shares of CF Industries in the fourth quarter valued at about $37,247,000. Finally, Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ increased its stake in shares of CF Industries by 459.4% in the fourth quarter. Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ now owns 435,352 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $36,583,000 after buying an additional 357,531 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.06% of the company's stock.

CF Industries Trading Down 0.1%

Shares of CF Industries stock opened at $92.16 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39, a quick ratio of 2.52 and a current ratio of 3.08. CF Industries Holdings, Inc. has a 52 week low of $67.34 and a 52 week high of $98.25. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $81.38 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $83.83. The stock has a market capitalization of $15.62 billion, a PE ratio of 13.61, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.37 and a beta of 0.97.

CF Industries (NYSE:CF - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 7th. The basic materials company reported $1.85 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.47 by $0.38. CF Industries had a return on equity of 15.50% and a net margin of 20.52%. The firm had revenue of $1.66 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.53 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.03 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 13.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that CF Industries Holdings, Inc. will post 5.83 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

CF Industries announced that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback plan on Wednesday, May 7th that permits the company to repurchase $2.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the basic materials company to buy up to 14.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are typically a sign that the company's board believes its stock is undervalued.

CF Industries Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 30th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 15th were paid a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, May 15th. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.17%. CF Industries's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 26.35%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price target on CF Industries from $100.00 to $90.00 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. Barclays raised their target price on CF Industries from $87.00 to $91.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 14th. Bank of America raised CF Industries from an "underperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $84.00 target price for the company in a research note on Monday, February 24th. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on CF Industries from $85.00 to $80.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, April 11th. Finally, Oppenheimer cut CF Industries from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating, three have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, CF Industries currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $90.21.

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.

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